The clowns at CNN recently released a video on whether thin is still in in the fashion world.

This article addresses two papers on the attractive form of the umbilicus in women.

Here is a novel approach to generating more attractive faces using a computer, though the morphing methodology used leaves much to be desired.  The article is by Wong et al.^{(1, pdf)}

Potter and Corneille came up with the following study:^{(1, pdf)}

Abstract: Face attractiveness relates positively to the mathematical averageness of a face, but how close attractive faces of varying groups are to their own and to other-group prototypes in the face space remains unclear.  In two studies, we modeled the locations of attractive and unattractive Caucasian, Asian, and African faces in participants’ face space using multidimensional scaling analysis.  In all three sets of faces, facial attractiveness significantly increased with the absolute proximity of a face to its group prototype.  In the case of Caucasian and African faces (Study 1), facial attractiveness also tended to increase with the absolute proximity of a face to the other-group prototype.  However, this association was at best marginal, and it became clearly non-significant when distance to the own-group prototype was controlled for.  Thus, the present research provides original evidence that average features of faces contribute to increasing their attractiveness, but only when these features are average to the group to which a face belongs.  The present research also offers further support to face space models of people’s mental representations of faces.

When I heard that a fashion model fell to her death in New York City, apparently committing suicide, the first thing that came to my mind was murder even though I didn’t know who this model was and the exact circumstances of her death.  This is a reasonable a priori assumption.  After all, New York City, one of the headquarters for organized international crime, has a very large number of criminal lowlife.  After reading about how Ruslana Korshunova died, I’d bet she was murdered.

This site has received a big makeover.  Here are some reasons why and an explanation of the changes.

A video featuring ‘fat-legged’ Ali Michael on MSNBC and a discussion of her disordered eating behavior in the current edition of Teen Vogue is featured below.

This page is for miscellaneous articles on the aesthetic or cosmetic treatment of skin.

The previous article on treating cellulite addressed mesotherapy or the use of agents that breakdown fat deposits in the fat cells just beneath the skin.  This article addresses a different approach to treating cellulite, namely using electromagnetic radiation or ultrasound to heat up the skin, typically in the form of twice-weekly treatments over a couple of weeks.  The heat damages collagen fibers, causes contracture of collagen-rich connective tissue, and prompts the body to overcompensate in terms of increased collagen content of the skin, which firms up the skin over the buttocks and back of the thighs.  This principle is also behind some approaches used for rejuvenating aging facial skin and reducing wrinkles.

This article will address the outline of the basic elements of makeup.^{(1, pdf)}