Exclusive online articles

How do concepts of normality and beauty influence the way we live? Why do we take the form we do, and why do we want to change what nature has given us? What might we look like in the future?

Explore the library of exclusive online articles below - produced to complement the print issue of 'Big Picture on How We Look' - to explore the interplay between the biology that sculpts our form and the culture that interprets, embellishes and adapts this form.

Section 1: Face the facts

The face accommodates our main sensory organs - eyes, ears, nose, mouth. Yet the human face is not just a scaffold for these organs. It has come to take on a role of its own, supporting social communication between individuals.

Is he fit?
Hormones can affect how faces look - and how we react to them.

Happy faces - sheep style
Can animals draw information from faces in the way we can? The evidence seems to suggest that, to some degree, they can.

Section 2: Bodytalk

Our bodies come in all shapes and sizes. We can thank forces as diverse as our evolutionary history, our genes, our upbringing and our environment for our body shape.

How, though, do we come to know where our body ends and the outside world begins? The brain is constantly acquiring information from the body, creating a mental representation of the body and its state of health.

How do we know?
Much is known about how organisms - including humans - develop. How has this knowledge been obtained?

Sexual dimorphism
Are males always bigger than females? Sometimes, nothing could be further from the truth…

Gaydar?
Humans are adept at rapidly drawing information about other people from the way they look. But is it possible to assess sexual orientation?

Rubber arm
That arm is mine…

In limbo: dealing with extreme body dysmorphia
Should doctors comply with requests to amputate healthy limbs?

Section 3: Growth and form

How we turn out depends on the genes we inherit from our parents, but also what happens to us in the womb and the environmental influences to which we are exposed after birth.

Scientists are gradually unravelling the extraordinarily complex developmental processes that turn a fertilised egg into an adult human. Insight comes from studies of people whose physical development differs from normal patterns and from work with 'model organisms'. And an evolutionary perspective is shedding light on the millions of years of changes that have led to the current human form.

Genes that affect how we look
A surge of new reports has begun to identify the genetic factors responsible for our physical appearance.

From Sonic hedgehog to sasquatch
Sonic hedgehog is a fundamentally important gene in human development. So why does it have such an odd name?

Blue eyes and red hair
The genetic basis of blue eyes and the classic Celtic look - red hair and pale skin - has been discovered.

Environmental effects
Our physical appearance can be altered while we are still in the womb by ‘teratogens’.

What is my fate?
In effect, embryogenesis boils down to the fate of cells - making sure a nose cell turns into a nose cell where a nose should be.

Section 4: Am I normal?

Humans don't differ greatly. Physical traits typically follow a normal distribution - a few people at the extremes, most in the middle.

But the middle seems to be a place of safety - those at the extremes inspire curiosity and even animosity. Even a minor difference may be picked up upon and mocked. Other extremes, though, may be looked upon with admiration or envy.

So perhaps it is not surprising that our physical appearance is so important to us - sometimes harmfully so. We seek ways to adapt our appearance, to emphasise who we really are or to try to be the person we wish to be.

Ageing and society
Why, when once they were admired for their wisdom and resilience, are older people now more likely to be stereotyped as having lost their marbles?

Body mod
Body modification is an extremely ancient and widespread practice, with varying significances from culture to culture.

Looking the wrong way
Inferring ‘types’ from external appearance has led science down some unfortunate roads.

Number-ology
Each of us is unique. Technology is now providing new ways to capture and record that uniqueness.

Albinism
Having no skin pigment at all makes you stand out from the crowd, but can also lead to stigmatisation.

Walking into trouble
Abnormal gaits can be diagnostic of serious underlying conditions, affecting the locomotory systems or the brain systems that control them.

Section 5: Beauty spot

Philosophers and artists have argued for centuries about what constitutes beauty. Is it an innate property of an object or person or does it depend solely on the mind of the observer?

Research has shown that beauty can to a large degree be measured objectively, though notions of personal beauty do vary by culture and period.

There has been a long tradition of associating beauty with good and ugliness with evil. Even now, being attractive can give us a head start in life and being ‘different’ can make life difficult.

Whose beauty?
Facial symmetry and averageness seem to apply across cultures. But what about body size?

Fat chance
How far should we go in tackling the ‘obesity epidemic’?

Section 6: Real voices

What is it like to be 'different', physically? Or to want to change your appearance? How do other people's reactions affect the way we behave? Should we just make the most of what we are or think about changing ourselves to enhance our appearance?

Changing Faces
Watch a video interview with Henrietta, Adam and Helen from facial disfigurement charity Changing Faces. The interview featured in the print issue of 'Big Picture on How We Look' is also provided.

Living with dwarfism
Watch a video interview with Nichola and Stefan, who both have achondroplasia. The interview featured in the print issue of 'Big Picture on How We Look' is also provided.

Interview with Jan
Watch a video interview with Jan Upfold, who has undergone cosmetic surgery on several occasions. The interview featured in the print issue of 'Big Picture on How We Look' is also provided.