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Ladies, it’s time to replace that little black number hanging in your wardrobe, because red is definitely your color.
Scientists, writing for the European Journal of Social Psychology, found that when men were shown a picture of a “moderately attractive” woman in a red top they reacted more favorably than when she was wearing a blue top. In the survey, reported by The Telegraph, men were asked to pose a number of questions to the woman in either outfit, the advance instantly became more provocative when the questions addressed the woman in red. Also, when the men were told they could meet the women they moved their chairs substantially closer when told it was the woman in red. (Learn more about the laws of attraction from TIME’s The Right Chemistry)
Researchers suggest the behavior is indicative of our animal instinct. In the animal kingdom red signals a good mating opportunity, meaning the female is at her most fertile. An idea which Lady Gaga may have taken all too literally, when she donned a red meat dress at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. (Check it out at PETA’s Verdict on Lady Gaga’s Meat Dress?)
However, in the past the red number has proven hugely successful with the opposite sex, from Marilyn Monroe and Princess Diana, to Oprah and even the seductive Jessica Rabbit. Niesta Kayser, University of Rochester in New York, said that women going on a date should always “wear a red shirt or dress” in order maximize their appeal.
Hmmm, NewsFeed now wonders if wearing red might actually play a strategic role in Sarah Palin’s political campaign? (See TIME’s Attn. Media and Politicians: It’s All About Palin)