Amusing Revelations on the Science of Cuteness Reavealed in New Study

So what makes us go awwwwww when we see a cuddly puppy, a waddling baby penguin or those heart melting doe-eyed expressions? How it Works Magazine delved into the subject and revealed some really interesting yet amusing finds.

Daily Mail reports, based on the How it Works Magazine Study that the very factor that helps us define cuteness in our minds, stems from the evolutionary need to take care of our own young. It is referred to as 'Baby Schema'. Wherein traits related to babies such as large heads, rounded chubby bodies, big eyes, soft textures etc triggers our mind to perceive anything in relation to cuteness. The same applies to puppies, kittens, baby penguins and other inanimate objects on the same lines.

"It is no coincidence then that we consider these creatures as much cuter than the others. The nature of mammals means that animals are born with plenty of growing left to do. 'Their features are rounder, noses and snouts are stubbier and there's often a thick layer of baby fat to help cut an even more rotund silhouette. As they slowly grow up, these features elongate and exaggerate and their 'cuteness' fades.", says Jodie Tyley, Editor, How it Works.

The science behind cuteness explains that by looking at certain cuteness-defined features and traits, it floods the human brain with 'feel good' chemicals such as oxytocin and dopamine. Oxytocin and dopamine are responsible for us feeling good, that also triggers when we fall in love or are simply happy about something.

A recent study conducted by the University of Lincoln, find that kids from the age of three itself, that is even before they start schools, rate puppies, kittens, bunnies as cuter than their adult counterpart, states the Daily Mail.