How do you quantify love? Do you have it? Are you looking for it? Will you know it? What is it to you?

Is that your critique of love or my question?

I’m hanging my head in shame at the answer I know is coming.
@Miram

@Rumplesmoothbottom Neither, I am thinking you can use the experiment for implications, to show that despite semantic variations in theory, homogeneous results indicate the dynamics leading to [i]it[/i] are largely similar and outside of our typical perceptions, which are usually predetermined.

Whatever "it" is.

And keeping the purpose of the study unknown to the participants so it doesn't impact the results.

I think the majority of people will experience attraction. And a level of love exists in all attractions.

Will that attraction last? I don't know. It is like arranged marriages.

The next question would why it exists? Is it because we're more open in a world of written language? And chemistry vs/and growing accustomed to the person.

@Miram I’m with you.

But how do I/we keep the purpose of the study unknown? How can you force people to talk to each other in this way without them knowing in advance the end goal?

What sort of cover story can we use?

Also I think there should be at least two groups, one that knows and one that doesn’t?

Also what would you consider our predetermined typical perceptions?

@Rumplesmoothbottom You lie about the purpose..Say to see if "people care about their new online friendships for "x" period of time and remain contact daily" And to see if it can happen unconditionally meaning with random people of your choice. Does friendship survive distance and lack of physical presence? Something along those lines.

This way they won't be actively avoiding to fall in love.
And make them promise to be honest by the end of the experiment.
I have to ask, is this for academic purposes?
In which case it is unethical in certain institutions.
Yes, that's called control groups.

Perceptions like "Love can't happen online" " you can't love someone you've never seen" "you have to go through life experiences to fall for each other"..etc.

Yeah yeah @Miram I totally agree with the perceptions you give. It’d be good to debunk all of those. Especially with the upcoming age of A.I. We are being promised.

The implications could be that if someone is capable of falling in love with what is essentially words on a screen within a certain amount of interactions then is it plausible love between A.I. And a human could exist?

Maybe I’m trying to hard.

No, I am just a simpleton bored of doing a simpletons job trying to entertain myself.

@Rumplesmoothbottom You're smart :) You are no simpleton. Yes, that is very related.

@Miram aww shucks, thanks. you too but I’m guessing you know that.

Do you think I’m right with my no pictures and one question a day rules? I Think there should be a no smut rule? And as an aside we could see how many people adhere to that rule?

I think it would also be interesting to look into an obligation angle. I think a lot of personal relationships in real life are effected by a perceived obligation to the other party? That could be an avenue to explore...