The Scent of Eros: Mysteries of Odor in Human Sexuality - Softcover

Kohl, James V

Softcover

ISBN 10: 059523383X ISBN 13: 9780595233830

Publisher: iUniverse, 2002

Synopsis

Scientists have long known that chemical communication via pheromones is a powerful influence on how animals develop, mate, bond, and nurture their offspring. Human animals are no exception. Pheromones, explain the authors, alter hormone levels, can accelerate puberty, control women's menstrual cycles, influence our choice in a mate, and even influence our sexual orientation. They help us tell lovers and family members from strangers and are essential to the mother-infant bond. Pheromones influence how often we have sex, and with whom. They influence how the brain develops, what we remember, and how we learn.

Grounded in solid scientific research, yet maintaining an easy-to-read style, The Scent of Eros is an engrossing read about a whole new world under our noses!

Kohl and Francoeur show the pathway from social-environmental sensory input to the hormones that influence our behavior, especially our sexual behavior. The authors suggest and show that pheromones are the primary link between the nature and the nurture of human sexuality.

About this title

From the Publisher:

The Scent of Eros is an excellent source for easy-to-read, yet scientifically supported, information about human pheromones and their influence on behavior. It has been professionally reviewed by respected authors from various scientific disciplines, and by non-scientists as well. Here a a few examples of these reviews:

"This is science at its best, with adventure, ideas, and lots of facts... You will never look at your lover or your family the same way again." --Helen Fisher, Ph.D., author of "The Anatomy of Love"

"This book examines odors and subliminal scents (termed sex attractants or pheromones), and how they influence numerous aspects of our sexuality and sexual behavior. While presenting important and complex research, the book is accessible to the general reader and makes science applicable to daily life." --(1996) SIECUS Report 24:3

"Kohl and Francoeur lead us on a treasure hunt through history, literature, and scientific data - providing clues to what today's human mating patterns have in common with moths, marmosets, minotaurs, and even the serpent in the Garden of Eden." --Gina Ogden, Ph.D., author of Women Who Love Sex"

"A challenging and original work at the cutting edge of sexual science - innovative, quirky, speculative, and solid thinking all at once. Kohl and Francoeur's thesis, that odor plays a far larger role in human sexuality than hitherto imagined, will give both lay and professional readers much to ponder about. It's also fascinating for showing how science is actually done, not by oracular statements from on high, but by leaps of imagination about topics we thought we had completely comprehended." --Timothy Perper, Ph.D., author of "Sex Signals: the Biology of Love"

About the Author:

James Vaughn Kohl has worked as a clinical laboratory scientist for twenty-six years, and devoted more than fourteen years to researching the relationship between odors and human sexual behavior. Robert T. Francoeur, Ph.D., has authored or edited 34 books including The International Encyclopedia of Sexuality. He is an evolutionary biologist, sexologist, and a professor of human sexuality at Fairleigh Dickinson and New York Universities. Bio James Vaughn Kohl was the first to accurately conceptualize human pheromones, and began presenting his findings to the scientific community in 1992. He continues to present to, and publish for, diverse scientific and lay audiences, while constantly monitoring the scientific presses for new information that is relevant to the development of his initial and ongoing conceptualization of human pheromones. Recently, Kohl integrated scientific evidence that pinpoints the evolved neurophysiological mechanism (gonadotropin releasing hormone pulsatility) that links olfactory/pheromonal input to genes in hormone-secreting cells of tissue in a specific area of the brain (the MPOA/AH) which is primarily involved in the sensory integration of olfactory and visual input, and in the development of human sexual preferences. His award-winning 2007 article/book chapter on multisensory integration: The Mind’s Eyes: Human pheromones, neuroscience, and male sexual preferences followed an award winning 2001 publication: Human pheromones: integrating neuroendocrinology and ethology, which was coauthored by distinguished researchers from Vienna. Rarely do researchers win awards in multiple disciplines, but Kohl’s 2001 award was for neuroscience, and his 2007 “Reiss Theory” award was for social science. Credentials Kohl has worked as a clinical laboratory scientist / medical laboratory scientist since 1974, and he has devoted more than twenty-five years to researching the relationship between the sense of smell and the development of human sexual preferences. Unlike many researchers who work with non-human subjects, medical laboratory scientists use the latest technology from many scientific disciplines to perform a variety of specialized diagnostic medical testing on people. James V. Kohl is certified with: * American Society for Clinical Pathology * American Medical Technologists

About this edition

• Publisher: iUniverse
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 059523383X
• ISBN 13: 9780595233830
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 309