Scientists discovered long ago that social animals have different (and bigger!) brains than animals that are solitary. In mammals especially, brain size correlates with complexity of social interaction. The reason is obvious: to understand another’s motivations, to develop language, to engage with others, to fight, to flirt, to gossip, to remember names, to negotiate—all of this takes considerable brain power. It goes the other way too: when a social animal like a human being is lonely or alienated, he suffers not just mentally, but physically. We evolved in a complex, social world of small groups, and to this day we function better when we have friends, romantic partners, and family members to share life with.

Continue reading “We Were Meant to Mingle”