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Social interaction research is lacking an experimental paradigm enabling researchers to make causal inferences in free social interactions. For instance, the expressive signals that causally modulate the emergence of romantic attraction during interactions remain unknown. To disentangle causality in the wealth of covarying factors that govern social interactions, we developed an open-source video-conference platform enabling researchers to covertly manipulate the social signals produced by participants during interactions. Using this platform, we performed a speed-dating experiment where we aligned or misaligned the facial smiles of participants in real time with face transformation algorithms. Even though participants remained totally unaware that their faces were being manipulated, aligning their smiles causally enhanced the romantic attraction they felt toward each other, compared to unaligned scenarios. Manipulations also influenced how participants synchronized and vocally reacted to each other. This paradigm causally manipulates the emergence of romantic attraction in free social interactions. Moreover, our methodology opens the possibility to perform causal inferences during free social interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prosocial relationships are beneficial to post-conviction reintegration, but criminal stigma may limit romantic relationship access. This study implements an experimental audit of speed dating, which allows people to meet several potential partners in a brief time, to explore how conviction disclosure, offense type, and attractiveness and personality ratings affect dating interest. Three women and three men confederates of different races/ethnicities were randomly assigned to a control or one of three offense conditions before interacting one-on-one with 64 participants in 4-minute Zoom Q&A speed dating sessions. Following each interaction, participants rated one another on attractiveness, personality dimensions, and interest in dating. Findings indicate that disclosure of property offense conviction significantly reduced women's willingness to date men confederates while assault and drug convictions did not negatively affect women's dating interest. Women confederate disclosures of convictions did not affect men's interest in dating them. Researching the effects of prior convictions on romantic relationship interest is challenging but important in revealing how criminal stigma varies by offense type to affect relationship capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is still much to learn about attraction and relationship formation. Here, we introduce an innovative method that utilizes modern technology to permit large‐scale, observational study of dyadic behavior that may yield new empirical insights into how people choose partners and form relationships: virtual speed dating. In doing so, we provide a methodological overview of a recent virtual speed‐dating study that we conducted, and we provide guidance for other scholars who wish to conduct such a study. Not only does virtual speed dating permit a feasible way to conduct large‐scale speed‐dating research and observe dyadic behavior during initial meeting and dating interactions, but it can benefit relationship science in myriad other ways, including the ability to (a) study novel research questions about first‐impression formation, romantic rivalries, and affiliative behaviors, (b) study diverse types of relationships, and (c) increase representation of diverse individuals in relationship science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's fast-paced society, many choose speed dating since it is efficient and convenient. Speed dating events are organized to allow busy singles to meet a variety of potential partners in a short timeframe, thereby maximizing their chances of making connections. It creates an organized setting that encourages brief but significant contacts, allowing people to quickly assess chemistry and compatibility. Furthermore, in the digital age, when online dating can be impersonal, speed dating provides face-to-face connection, which increases authenticity and reduces the ambiguity of online profiles. In general, speed dating appeals to modern daters who want quick and tangible results in their search for romance. This research project aims to gain insights into forecasting the course of relationships created during initial meetings utilizing cutting-edge Machine Learning (ML) approaches. Light Gradient Boosting Classification (LGBC) serves as a foundational framework, and an innovative approach is introduced by combining it with the Henry Gass Solubility Optimization Algorithm (HGSOA), Flying Fox Optimization (FFO), and Mayflies Optimization (MO), resulting in a hybrid model. Investigation reveals that throughout the training phase, the LGBC model achieved a small accuracy of 0.938, suggesting its comparative inferiority to the LGHS and LGMO models, which achieved accuracies of 0.945 and 0.956, respectively. Nonetheless, the hybrid HGFF model emerged as the clear accurate model, outperforming all other competitors with an astounding accuracy of 0.965. As a result, it is often regarded as the best model for anticipating relationship dynamics during early meetings, providing vital insights into the complexities of relationships on first dates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the current field study was to investigate the relationships between personality traits and placebo responsiveness, and the effects of alcohol and placebo alcohol on the changes of the subjective state and behavior among participants (N = 64, gender ratio 50% men: 50% women, mean age = 26.64). We suggest that expectations associated with alcohol consumption itself can lead to subjective and objective inebriation, and some individuals respond better to placebo than others, so placebo reactivity is associated with certain personality traits. In the present field study, the effect of placebo alcohol is measured in a typical alcohol consumption social setting, and the study seeks to explore relationships among certain personality traits (sociability and extraversion, spirituality and religiosity and dispositional optimism) and placebo responsiveness, furthermore the effects of alcohol and placebo alcohol on subjective and objective intoxication. In this study, the expectation induced classical placebo effect in the field was successfully demonstrated, while no support for a relationship between personal traits and placebo responsiveness was found. Based on the results, a desirable goal is to reframe the inebriated state that is often considered "desirable" by young people by raising awareness of the placebo effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In popular narratives, the first date with a potential mate often centers on their gaze as embodiment of interest and attraction. However, evidence is still lacking on the role of eye-contact as a potent signal in human social interaction in the context of dating. In addition, behavioral mechanisms of mate selection are not well understood. In the present study, we therefore examined mutual eye-contact and its influence on mate choice by applying dual mobile eye-tracking during naturalistic speed-dates. A total of 30 male and 30 female subjects attended four speed-dates each (N = 240). Subjects were more likely to choose those dating partners with whom they shared more eye-contact with. In addition, perceived attractiveness played an important role for mate choice. Interestingly, receiving but not giving eye-contact also predicted individual mate choice. Eye-contact thus acts as an important signal of romantic attraction when encountering a dating partner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study bridges the gap between three industries, namely the dating industry, the event industry, and the hospitality industry. Because of the width and depth of speed dating events, this type of event is perfectly suitable to further discuss and formulate propositions in hospitality and event management studies. From a conceptual point view, this study is supporting the fact that a new type of event should be added to the existing ones developed by Getz and Page (2020). As a result, this study has coined 'Special Interest and Meso-adultainment events', as a new type of event. This type of event would include entertainment and recreational activities such as speed dating events, masochism bondage events, etc. From a practical point of view, this study has revealed the fact that speed dating events are not only meeting existing needs, but have some potential to grow. In terms of future research, this study is suggesting a focus on the hospitality industry and on hospitality management studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic limited medical student's exposure to surgical specialities, potentially affecting their understanding of specialties and limiting access to mentorship. Aims: To develop a novel online 'round table' session to increase medical student's exposure to surgical careers, and to assess the value of the event as an educational tool. Method: A virtual education session was held, with questionnaires being completed before and after the virtual event. The event began with an introduction to surgical training. Participants rotated every 10 min in groups, with two specialties represented by a specialist registrar at each station. Data were analysed using a 5-point Likert scale, and a Student Evaluation of Educational Quality (SEEQ) questionnaire was completed. Results: Of the 19 students involved, 14 (73.7%) were female, and 16 (84.2%) were undergraduate. The specialty attendees were most interested in before and after the event were neurosurgery (21.1%, n = 4) and cardiothoracic surgery (26.3%, n = 5), respectively. Five (26.3%) students changed the subspecialty they were most interested in after the event. Attendees' knowledge of surgical training in Ireland improved from 52.6% prior to the educational session to 69.5% after (p < 0.001). The session resulted in an increase in the perceived importance of research (4 [IQR 2–4] versus 4 [IQR 4–5], p = 0.0021). Conclusions: This 'Virtual Surgical Speed Dating' event offered medical students an opportunity to interact with various surgical specialties despite the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The novel approach increased medical students' exposure to surgical trainees, improved knowledge of training pathways and altered student values influencing career decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research note argues that investigating the intersections between hospitality and speed dating events can yield practical implications for both industries. Hospitality professionals can gain valuable insights into how to enhance customer experiences by understanding the unique needs and expectations of individuals participating in dating events. Conversely, dating event organizers can draw upon the principles of hospitality to create more engaging and enjoyable experiences for their attendees, ultimately contributing to the success and longevity of such events. Methods: Adopting the User-Centred Design (UCD), which is structured around seven distinct phases including understand, observe, engage, define, ideate, prototype and test, and implement. Results: This study suggests a blueprint for the new concept of speed dating event. It proposes a methodology to develop a research agenda to generate strategies for implementing the "dinner date" concept. Implications: Developing aligning goals between hospitality and dating industries creates a valuable experience for their target audience, where food is presented as a soft management tool facilitating this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Artificial intelligence (AI) systems offer effective support for online learning and teaching, including personalizing learning for students, automating instructors’ routine tasks, and powering adaptive assessments. However, while the opportunities for AI are promising, the impact of AI systems on the culture of, norms in, and expectations about interactions between students and instructors are still elusive. In online learning, learner–instructor interaction (inter alia, communication, support, and presence) has a profound impact on students’ satisfaction and learning outcomes. Thus, identifying how students and instructors perceive the impact of AI systems on their interaction is important to identify any gaps, challenges, or barriers preventing AI systems from achieving their intended potential and risking the safety of these interactions. To address this need for forward-looking decisions, we used Speed Dating with storyboards to analyze the authentic voices of 12 students and 11 instructors on diverse use cases of possible AI systems in online learning. Findings show that participants envision adopting AI systems in online learning can enable personalized learner–instructor interaction at scale but at the risk of violating social boundaries. Although AI systems have been positively recognized for improving the quantity and quality of communication, for providing just-in-time, personalized support for large-scale settings, and for improving the feeling of connection, there were concerns about responsibility, agency, and surveillance issues. These findings have implications for the design of AI systems to ensure explainability, human-in-the-loop, and careful data collection and presentation. Overall, contributions of this study include the design of AI system storyboards which are technically feasible and positively support learner–instructor interaction, capturing students’ and instructors’ concerns of AI systems through Speed Dating, and suggesting practical implications for maximizing the positive impact of AI systems while minimizing the negative ones.

Laughter is a ubiquitous vocal behavior and plays an important role in social bonding, though little is known if it can also communicate romantic attraction. The present study addresses this question by investigating spontaneous laughter produced during a 5-min conversation in a heterosexual speed-dating experiment. Building on the posits of Accommodation Theory, romantic attraction was hypothesized to coincide with a larger number of shared laughs as a form of convergence in vocal behavior that reduces the perceived distance between the daters. Moreover, high-attraction dates were expected to converge toward the same laughter type. The results of the experiment demonstrate that (a) laughs are particularly frequent in the first minute of the conversation, (b) daters who are mutually attracted show a significantly larger degree of temporal overlap in laughs, (c) specific laughter types (classified as a nasal “laugh-snort”) prevail in high-attraction dates, though shared laughs are not consistently of the same type. Based on this exploratory analysis (limited to cisgender, heterosexual couples), we conclude that laughter is a frequent phenomenon in speed dating and gives some indication of a mutual romantic attraction.

Artificial intelligence (AI) systems offer effective support for online learning and teaching, including personalizing learning for students, automating instructors' routine tasks, and powering adaptive assessments. However, while the opportunities for AI are promising, the impact of AI systems on the culture of, norms in, and expectations about interactions between students and instructors are still elusive. In online learning, learner–instructor interaction (inter alia, communication, support, and presence) has a profound impact on students' satisfaction and learning outcomes. Thus, identifying how students and instructors perceive the impact of AI systems on their interaction is important to identify any gaps, challenges, or barriers preventing AI systems from achieving their intended potential and risking the safety of these interactions. To address this need for forward-looking decisions, we used Speed Dating with storyboards to analyze the authentic voices of 12 students and 11 instructors on diverse use cases of possible AI systems in online learning. Findings show that participants envision adopting AI systems in online learning can enable personalized learner–instructor interaction at scale but at the risk of violating social boundaries. Although AI systems have been positively recognized for improving the quantity and quality of communication, for providing just-in-time, personalized support for large-scale settings, and for improving the feeling of connection, there were concerns about responsibility, agency, and surveillance issues. These findings have implications for the design of AI systems to ensure explainability, human-in-the-loop, and careful data collection and presentation. Overall, contributions of this study include the design of AI system storyboards which are technically feasible and positively support learner–instructor interaction, capturing students' and instructors' concerns of AI systems through Speed Dating, and suggesting practical implications for maximizing the positive impact of AI systems while minimizing the negative ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A core component of social anxiety is the constant concern about what others think of the self. Could such metaperceptions—beliefs about how others view the self—play a role in relationship initiation attempts? In the present research, we examined whether metaperceptions may contribute to why people higher in social anxiety experience difficulties in initial interactions. In 2 first-impressions contexts, a platonic getting-acquainted context (Study 1: N = 544; 2,878 dyads) and a speed dating context (Study 2: N = 376; 4,797 dyads), we explored the roles of 2 components of metaperceptions: meta-positivity (i.e., believing interaction partners' perceptions of the self are in line with the socially desirable personality profile) and distinctive meta-accuracy (i.e., accurately recognizing interaction partners' unique perception of the self, controlling for meta-positivity). Results revealed that people higher in social anxiety were liked less by interaction partners across both contexts, a link that was partially accounted for by lower distinctive meta-accuracy displayed by those higher in social anxiety. Further, lower meta-positivity displayed by people higher in social anxiety also contributed to the links between greater social anxiety and being liked less in the platonic setting and liking others less in both contexts. In sum, metaperceptions may play an important role in shaping initial interactions, potentially helping to explain why people with greater social anxiety encounter difficulties forming new relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main goal of this paper is to demonstrate the impacts of speed dating on the enhancement of university-business collaboration. With the example of the metropolitan region of Prague and its largest university (Charles University), the case study on a speed dating event was organized by this University in the field of life science and medical devices. The results show, that speed dating itself has limited direct impact on real technology transfer. Only 1 of the 44 newly gained contacts was transformed into real cooperation in the form of consultancy. On the other hand, speed dating has several indirect impacts, which can moderate fragmentation of the regional innovation system, i.e. community and trust building, learning of common “language” and exchange of information. Direct impact can be enhanced by the follow-up activities of dedicated people (e.g. technology scouts or business development managers), who can encourage and support creation of more new technology partnerships.

A consistent finding in the literature is that men overperceive sexual interest in women (i.e., sexual overperception bias). Several potential mechanisms have been proposed for this bias, including projecting one's own interest onto a given partner, sexual desire, and self-rated attractiveness. Here, we examined the influence of these factors in attraction detection accuracy during speed-dates. Sixty-seven participants (34 women) split in four groups went on a total of 10 speed-dates with all opposite-sex members of their group, resulting in 277 dates. The results showed that attraction detection accuracy was reliably predicted by projection of own interest in combination with participant sex. Specifically, men were more accurate than women in detecting attraction when they were not interested in their partner compared to when they were interested. These results are discussed in the wider context of arousal influencing detection of partner attraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What happens when we unexpectedly see an attractive potential partner? Previous studies in laboratory settings suggest that the visualization of attractive and unattractive photographs influences the perception of time. The major aim of this research is to study time perception and attraction in a realistic social scenario, by investigating if changes in subjective time measured during a speed dating are associated with attraction. The duration of the dates was variable and participants had to estimate the time that passed. Among other measures, participants also rated the potential partners in terms of their physical attractiveness before and after the dates and reported if they would like to exchange contact with them. Results showed that, in a real speed dating situation, when there is a perception of the partner as being physically more attractive, women tend to overestimate the duration of that meeting, whereas men tend to underestimate its duration. Such changes may reflect evolutionary adaptations which make the human cognitive system more responsive in situations related to reproductive fitness.

What happens when we unexpectedly see an attractive potential partner? Previous studies in laboratory settings suggest that the visualization of attractive and unattractive photographs influences the perception of time. The major aim of this research is to study time perception and attraction in a realistic social scenario, by investigating if changes in subjective time measured during a speed dating are associated with attraction. The duration of the dates was variable and participants had to estimate the time that passed. Among other measures, participants also rated the potential partners in terms of their physical attractiveness before and after the dates and reported if they would like to exchange contact with them. Results showed that, in a real speed dating situation, when there is a perception of the partner as being physically more attractive, women tend to overestimate the duration of that meeting, whereas men tend to underestimate its duration. Such changes may reflect evolutionary adaptations which make the human cognitive system more responsive in situations related to reproductive fitness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous neuroimaging studies demonstrated that ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) activity reflects how much an individual positively views each person (impression). Here, we investigated whether the degree to which individuals think others positively view them (reflected impression) is similarly tracked by activity in the vmPFC by using fMRI and speed‐dating events. We also examined whether activity of the vmPFC in response to the faces of others would predict the impression formed through direct interactions with them. The task consisted of three sessions: pre‐speed‐dating fMRI, speed‐dating events, and post‐speed‐dating fMRI (not reported here). During the pre‐speed‐dating fMRI, each participant passively viewed the faces of others whom they would meet in the subsequent speed‐dating events. After the fMRI, they rated the impression and reflected impression of each face. During the speed‐dating events, the participants had 3‐min conversations with partners whose faces were presented during the fMRI task, and they were asked to choose the partners whom they preferred at the end of the events. The results revealed that the value of both the impression and reflected impression were automatically represented in the vmPFC. However, the impression fully mediated the link between the reflected impression and vmPFC activity. These results highlight a close link between reflected appraisal and impression formation and provide important insights into neural and psychological models of how the reflected impression is formed in the human brain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Viewing other people with distinctive accuracy—the degree to which personality impressions correspond with targets' unique characteristics—often predicts positive interpersonal experiences, including liking and relationship satisfaction. Does this hold in the context of first dates, or might distinctive accuracy have negative links with romantic interest in such evaluative settings? We examined this question using two speed-dating samples (Sample 1: N = 172, N = 2,407 dyads; Sample 2: N = 397, N = 1,849 dyads). Not surprisingly, positive impressions of potential dating partners were strongly associated with greater romantic interest. In contrast, distinctively accurate impressions were associated with significantly less romantic interest. This association was even stronger for potential partners whose personalities were less romantically appealing, specifically, those lower in extraversion. In sum, on a first date, distinctive accuracy tends to be paired with lower romantic interest. The potential implications of distinctive accuracy for romantic interest and of romantic interest for distinctive accuracy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Without love--or, at least, its persistence as an idea--our cultural economy would collapse. Who else but the haves, the hopefuls and the have-nots of romantic liaison would sustain the business of restaurants, nightclubs and bars, not to mention the sale of films, books, music, magazines, of everything really? An Italian poet once wrote 'any time that is not spent on love is wasted.' Yet the marketing academy rarely engages in the business of lovemaking, at least in a scholarly capacity. This paper then, considers a potent manifestation of the search for love, speeddating--a form of dating that offers men and women the opportunity to partake in short, multiple dates in one night. It concludes with some guidance for lovers of marketing everywhere, distilled from the speeddating parable, contending that sagacity, self-confidence and courage, while important, are not nearly as fundamental as loving itself, which truly offers a route to marketing excellence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest have been well documented; however, it is unclear whether this cognitive bias could be explained by other factors. In the current study, 1,226 participants (586 men, 640 women) participated in a speed-dating task in which they rated their sexual interest in each other as well as the sexual interest they perceived from their partners. Consistent with previous findings, results showed that men tended to overperceive sexual interest from their partners, whereas women tended to underperceive sexual interest. However, this sex difference became negligible when we considered potential mediators, such as the raters' sociosexual orientation and raters' tendency to project their own levels of sexual interest onto their partners. These findings challenge the popular notion that sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest have evolved as a specialized adaptation to different selection pressures in men and women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fear of being single (FOBS) tends to predict settling for less when seeking a romantic partner. The present research sought to examine whether this is due, at least in part, to lower physical attractiveness among those who fear being single. In a photo-rating study (Study 1, N = 122) and a speed-dating study (Study 2, N = 171), participants completed the FOBS Scale, rated perceptions of their own physical attractiveness, and were then rated on physical attractiveness by a team of raters. In Studies 1 and 2, FOBS was not significantly associated with judge-rated physical attractiveness as a bivariate association or in hierarchical regressions accounting for anxious and avoidant attachments, gender, and smiling. There were mixed findings in both studies regarding the association between FOBS and self-rated physical attractiveness in bivariate versus multivariate analyses. However, the tendency of those with stronger FOBS to be less selective during speed dating was not explained by either their judge-rated or their self-rated physical attractiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a recent article published in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JPSP; Huang, Yeomans, Brooks, Minson, & Gino, 2017), we reported the results of 2 experiments involving "getting acquainted" conversations among strangers and an observational field study of heterosexual speed daters. In all 3 studies, we found that asking more questions in conversation, especially follow-up questions (that indicate responsiveness to a partner), increases interpersonal liking of the question asker. Kluger and Malloy (2019) offer a critique of the analyses in Study 3 of our article. Though their response is a positive signal of engaged interest in our research, they made 3 core mistakes in their analyses that render their critique invalid. First, they tested the wrong variables, leading to conclusions that were erroneous. Second, even if they had analyzed the correct variables, some of their analytical choices were not valid for our speed-dating dataset, casting doubt on their conclusions. Third, they misrepresented our original findings, ignoring results in all 3 of our studies that disprove some of their central criticisms. In summary, the conclusions that Kluger and Malloy (2019) drew about Huang et al. (2017)'s findings are incorrect. The original results are reliable and robust: Asking more questions, especially follow-up questions, increases interpersonal liking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Huang, Yeomans, Brooks, Minson, and Gino (2017) studied the role of question asking in conversations. They claimed to have identified "a robust and consistent relationship between question-asking and liking" (p. 1), where liking is affected largely by follow-up questions, rather than by switch questions. They concluded that their "data support a trait-level model of question-asking behavior" (p. 12), and that "question-asking is a critical component of active listening" (p. 14). Our theoretical, methodological, and empirical reanalyses of their speed-dating study (Study 3), where liking was operationalized as being offered a second date, lead to different conclusions. Their speed-dating data conforms to an asymmetric block design, and should have been analyzed using the social relations model, to unconfound the effects of the actor, partner, dyad, and gender. Social relations modeling showed that about a third of the variance of question asking can be attributed to a trait, but that another third of the variance can be attributed to the specific dyad, and some smaller portion of the variance can be attributed to the partner's tendency to elicit question asking. Bivariate social relations modeling showed that latent scores of follow-up questions and switch questions are largely isomorphic. Finally, asking an opposite sex partner questions tends to be inversely related to being offered a second date, at least for men. Based on theory, our reanalysis, and other empirical findings, we conclude that offering a second-date is not equivalent to liking, and that question asking is different from listening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two studies investigated the role of dispositional social approach and avoidance motives (i.e., what people generally desire and fear in social relationships) for the decision to participate in a speed-dating event. In a sample of N = 205 college students (Study 1), approach motives were positively and avoidance motives negatively associated with the decision to participate in a speed-dating event. Focusing on the underlying processes, Study 2 (N = 153) showed that approach and avoidance motives were differentially associated with attributions of acceptance and rejection experienced in a previous speed-dating scenario. The higher participants' approach motives were, the more they attributed acceptance to internal, stable, and global causes. Conversely, the higher participants' avoidance motives were, the more they attributed rejection to internal, stable, and global causes. Attributions, in turn, predicted expectations for an upcoming speed-dating event, and positive expectations positively predicted decision for participating in the speed-dating event. Thus, what people generally desire and fear in social relationships influence relationship initiation through differential attributions of previous social success and failure and thereby expectations for the upcoming social events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing visibility of Islam in the public spaces of Western societies is often interpreted in the media as a sign of Muslim radicalisation. This article questions this postulate by examining the flourishing Muslim marriage industry in the UK. It argues that these 'halal' services, increasingly popular among the young generation of British Muslims, reflect the semantic shifting of categories away from the repertoire of Islamic jurisprudence to cultural and identity labels visible in public space. Informed by long-term ethnographic fieldwork in the British field of Islamic law, this article examines a Muslim speed-dating event, which took place in central London in 2013. It investigates how Islamic morality is maintained and negotiated in everyday social interactions rather than cultivated via discipline and the pursuit of virtuous dispositions. Using Goffman's "frame analysis" and his interpretation of the social as a space of "performances" as well as recent anthropological reflections on "ordinary ethics" (Lambek) and "everyday Islam" (Schielke, Osella and Soares), it examines the potential for such practices to define the contours of a new public culture where difference is celebrated as a form of distinction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ever return from a meeting feeling elated by all those exciting talks, yet unsure how all those presented glamorous and/or exciting tools can be useful in your research? Or do you have a great piece of software you want to share, yet only a handful of people visited your poster? We have all been there, and that is why we organized the Matchmaking for Computational and Experimental Biologists Session at the latest ISCB/GLBIO’2017 meeting in Chicago (May 15-17, 2017). The session exemplifies a novel approach, mimicking “matchmaking”, to encouraging communication, making connections and fostering collaborations between computational and non-computational biologists. More specifically, the session facilitates face-to-face communication between researchers with similar or differing research interests, which we feel are critical for promoting productive discussions and collaborations. To accomplish this, three short scheduled talks were delivered, focusing on RNA-seq, integration of clinical and genomic data, and chromatin accessibility analyses. Next, small-table developer-led discussions, modeled after speed-dating, enabled each developer (including the speakers) to introduce a specific tool and to engage potential users or other developers around the table. Notably, we asked the audience whether any other tool developers would want to showcase their tool and we thus added four developers as moderators of these small-table discussions. Given the positive feedback from the tool developers, we feel that this type of session is an effective approach for promoting valuable scientific discussion, and is particularly helpful in the context of conferences where the number of participants and activities could hamper such interactions.

The main goal of this paper is to demonstrate the impacts of speed dating on the enhancement of university-business collaboration. With the example of the metropolitan region of Prague and its largest university (Charles University), the case study on a speed dating event was organized by this University in the field of life science and medical devices. The results show, that speed dating itself has limited direct impact on real technology transfer. Only 1 of the 44 newly gained contacts was transformed into real cooperation in the form of consultancy. On the other hand, speed dating has several indirect impacts, which can moderate fragmentation of the regional innovation system, i.e. community and trust building, learning of common "language" and exchange of information. Direct impact can be enhanced by the follow-up activities of dedicated people (e.g. technology scouts or business development managers), who can encourage and support creation of more new technology partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose This paper aims to focus on Brazilian business fairs primarily attended by metalworking companies.Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative and exploratory approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews answered by exhibitor companies from two of the most relevant Brazilian states in this industrial sector: Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul.Findings The results recognize the four pillars of the interorganizational relationship developed among exhibitors at business fairs and launch serious implications for the effective development of business fairs as spaces of interorganizational relationship and of value creation.Originality/value This is the first study discussing the trade fairs of the Brazilian emerging industry related to the metal-mechanic sector of two of the most significant states in the country: Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inter-individual differences in human fundamental frequency (F0, perceived as voice pitch) predict mate quality and reproductive success, and affect listeners' social attributions. Although humans can readily and volitionally manipulate their vocal apparatus and resultant voice pitch, for instance, in the production of speech sounds and singing, little is known about whether humans exploit this capacity to adjust the non-verbal dimensions of their voices during social (including sexual) interactions. Here, we recorded full-length conversations of 30 adult men and women taking part in real speed-dating events and tested whether their voice pitch (mean, range and variability) changed with their personal mate choice preferences and the overall desirability of each dating partner. Within-individual analyses indicated that men lowered the minimum pitch of their voices when interacting with women who were overall highly desired by other men. Men also lowered their mean voice pitch on dates with women they selected as potential mates, particularly those who indicated a mutual preference (matches). Interestingly, although women spoke with a higher and more variable voice pitch towards men they selected as potential mates, women lowered both voice pitch parameters towards men who were most desired by other women and whom they also personally preferred. Between-individual analyses indicated that men in turn preferred women with lower-pitched voices, wherein women's minimum voice pitch explained up to 55% of the variance in men's mate preferences. These results, derived in an ecologically valid setting, show that individual- and group-level mate preferences can interact to affect vocal behaviour, and support the hypothesis that human voice modulation functions in non-verbal communication to elicit favourable judgements and behaviours from others, including potential mates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Matchmaking companies and theoretical perspectives on close relationships suggest that initial attraction is, to some extent, a product of two people’s self-reported traits and preferences. We used machine learning to test how well such measures predict people’s overall tendencies to romantically desire other people (actor variance) and to be desired by other people (partner variance), as well as people’s desire for specific partners above and beyond actor and partner variance (relationship variance). In two speed-dating studies, romantically unattached individuals completed more than 100 self-report measures about traits and preferences that past researchers have identified as being relevant to mate selection. Each participant met each opposite-sex participant attending a speed-dating event for a 4-min speed date. Random forests models predicted 4% to 18% of actor variance and 7% to 27% of partner variance; crucially, however, they were unable to predict relationship variance using any combination of traits and preferences reported before the dates. These results suggest that compatibility elements of human mating are challenging to predict before two people meet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]