| Balance is Beautiful |
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| Written by aCLN.tv | |
| Sunday, 30 September 2007 | |
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B eauty is in the eye of the beholder, goes an old saying. But how do we really know what is beautiful in the eyes of the majority? The theory of beauty can be traced back as early as the pre-Socratic period. The ancient Greeks saw a strong connection between mathematics and beauty. They noted that well proportioned objects (and organisms) are attractive.In the 1990s, Reader's Digest published an article about what human babies see as attractive. The writers presented babies with photographs of different faces (belonging to men and women from different walks in life—from popular actors, models, athletes to the your average Joe and Jane, and even the FBI's Most Wanted list). They studied how the babies reacted to these photographs, and which faces the babies responded favorably to. The result? The babies were attracted most to faces that were perfectly proportioned—Denzel Washington topped the men's list while Amber Valetta copped the most attractive female face. This suggests that regardless of race or gender, people whose facial features are symmetrical and proportioned are more attractive than those whose faces are not. Even in the animal and insect world, this principle seems true. Animals with missing limbs or other deformities find it harder to find a mate. Ning takes a closer look at the connection between beauty and balance in this pilot episode. In Segment 1, our host interviews Ambassadress of beauty Dr. Vicki Belo, and also gets opinions from Filipinos in the US and the Philippines about what they think is beautiful in a person.
Segment 2 reveals Dr. Belo's own struggles with what Philippine society considers as beautiful. This sparks her lifelong passion to be an "equalizer." Studies show that preference for beautiful faces create a new type of discrimination called "lookism." For example: teachers prefer to give better grades to good-looking students than those who look ordinary; physically attractive patients receive more personalized care from their doctors; and believe it or not , handsome criminals receive lighter sentences than less attractive convicts. One study found that people low in physical attractiveness earn 5 to 10 percent less than ordinary looking people, who in turn earn 3 to 8 percent less than those who are considered by society as "good-looking." Mutya Acebron, a faculty member of The Lewis College in Sorsogon City, Philippines, is multi-talented and hardworking: she loves to sing (and she sings beautifully too), and friends and family describe her as kind and compassionate. But as Mutya tells Ning, these aren't enough to give her the kind of attention that "prettier" people are used to having. Get Flash to see this player.
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| Last Updated ( Monday, 10 December 2007 ) |
What are the latest trends in beauty? Ning asks none other than the beauty expert Dr. Belo herself. Afraid of cosmetic surgery? Dr. Belo suggests non-invasive and other methods that are safe, quick, affordable and effective. Indeed, beauty is important (why else would it command a billion-dollar industry worldwide?). In Segment 4, Ning shares with us her secrets to achieving beauty and balance.| < Prev |
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