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| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| 'Beer goggles' effect explained |
| 2006-11-21 |
| Not sure if Americans have the same or similar expression. Scientists believe they have worked out a formula to calculate how "beer goggles" affect a drinker's vision. The drink-fuelled phenomenon is said to transform supposedly "ugly" people into beauties - until the morning after. Researchers at Manchester University say while beauty is in the eye of the beer-holder, the amount of alcohol consumed is not the only factor. Additional factors include the level of light in the pub or club, the drinker's own eyesight and the room's smokiness. The distance between two people is also a factor. KEY TO FORMULA They all add up to make the aesthetically-challenged more attractive, according to the formula. The formula can work out a final score, ranging from less than one - where there is no beer goggle effect - to more than 100. Nathan Efron, Professor of Clinical Optometry at the University of Manchester, said: "The beer goggles effect isn't solely dependent on how much alcohol a person consumes, there are other influencing factors at play too. "For example, someone with normal vision, who has consumed five pints of beer and views a person 1.5 metres away in a fairly smoky and poorly lit room, will score 55, which means they would suffer from a moderate beer goggle effect." The research was commissioned by eyecare firm Bausch & Lomb PureVision. A poll showed that 68% of people had regretted giving their phone number to someone to whom they later realised they were not attracted. A formula rating of less than one means no effect. Between one and 50 the person you would normally find unattractive appears less "visually offensive". Non-appealing people become suddenly attractive between 51 and 100. At more than 100, someone not considered attractive looks like a super model. |
| Posted by:phil_b |
| #8 Remember the Mickey Gilley's song, "The Girls Get Prettier at Closing time"? I always said that can't be true because that's when they turn the lights back up. This formula confirms it. |
| Posted by: GK 2006-11-21 22:46 |
| #7 Beer Goggles |
| Posted by: Parabellum 2006-11-21 19:19 |
| #6 Not sure if Americans have the same or similar expression My memory is a bit hazy, but I thought I was the one who invented it. :-) It could well have been an independent discovery, but the meaning is universally understood. |
| Posted by: gorb 2006-11-21 16:36 |
| #5 phil_b--Yes, "beer goggles" is the same expression in America. And unfortunately it has the same consequences and regrets too! |
| Posted by: Dar 2006-11-21 10:14 |
| #4 What happened to the old formula where the point is reached when the number of minutes left till closing matches the number of standard drinks consumed? |
| Posted by: Procopius2K 2006-11-21 08:39 |
| #3 You've left out the effect of distance Gorb, which of course is canceled out by factors of gravity. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2006-11-21 08:05 |
| #2 doesn't help when you wake up with Coyote Ugly |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-11-21 07:52 |
| #1 Hey! What good is this without the formula? :-) |
| Posted by: gorb 2006-11-21 05:23 |