Is There a Science to Finding Love?

Conversations with Coleman

The Free Press

Philosophy, Society & Culture

4.5 • 610 Ratings

🗓️ 5 January 2026

⏱️ 79 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Dr. Anna Machin is a British evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Oxford who studies the neuroscience and psychology of love. Anna and I talk through what science actually says about attraction, attachment, and long-term relationships, and why so much modern dating advice gets human nature wrong. We get into dating apps and how they shape behavior, whether love at first sight is real, what attachment styles do and don’t explain, and what science says about polyamory. We also discuss common myths about pheromones, love languages, and whether having kids really makes people happier. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to another episode of Conversations with Coleman. My guest today is Dr. Anna Machen.
0:06.2	Dr. Machen is a British evolutionary anthropologist, writer, and broadcaster at the University of Oxford,
0:12.3	best known for her research on the neuroscience, genetics, and psychology of love. In this episode,
0:18.7	we discuss common misconceptions about evolutionary psychology.
0:22.4	We talk about what love actually is from a scientific perspective.
0:26.6	We talk about the unique challenges and pitfalls associated with dating apps.
0:31.8	We talk about attachment theory.
0:33.9	We talk about polyamory.
0:35.9	We talk about so-called sex and love addiction. We talk about whether
0:40.0	pheromones are real. We talk about the effects of birth control. Dr. Machen debunks the myth
0:46.6	of menstrual synchrony. We talk about the concept of love languages. And finally, we talk about
0:52.9	whether having kids really makes you happier.
0:55.7	So without further ado,
0:57.5	Dr. Anna Maiton.
1:02.7	My name is Sherlock Holmes.
1:08.7	It's an unusual name.
1:10.5	Introducing Young Sherlock, a new Guy Ritchie series.
1:13.6	What game are we playing today?
1:15.6	Discover the origins.
1:16.6	It's leaving. Those days are surely behind me.
1:18.6	Of crime's most iconic mind.
1:20.6	There has been a break-in.
	...

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