"Some say it's too clinical and removes the mystery, says ScientificMatch.com's founder Eric Holzle, "I don't think it takes the romance out of it at all. It only adds to it. Physical chemistry is only a piece of the overall matchmaking puzzle." Holzle came up with the idea for the visionary site one night when he saw a documentary on television about the so-called 'sweaty t-shirt experiment.' In this groundbreaking and famous (amongst 'love scientists') study, women were made to sniff t-shirts worn extensively by a group of male students and to rate their attraction to each scent. It turned out that the women were drawn to smells of the men whose immune systems were genetically very different from their own.

But it might still be a stretch to deduce conclusively from this type of data that opposites
attract. The 'same versus opposite' debate seems in fact central to love theorists' ongoing dialogue. Parship.com, which boasts being one of the biggest online dating services in Germany and Europe, is attempting to bring a sense of integration to the argument. Its 'Parship Principle' is bolstered by "a balanced mixture of shared and contrasting characteristics." With sites in 14 European countries including The Netherlands, Spain, Ireland and Sweden, Parship claimed a success rate of 38% in its premium members last year. The concept involves some research on nonverbal communication, Gestalt psychology and analytical psychology. Its maestro, Dr. Hugo Schmale, a professor with 30 years of related research at the University of Hamburg under his belt, has crafted his findings into the service's underlying methodology.

Parship's initial questionnaire contains some of the usual explorations of leisure interests, social behaviors and such. But at certain points of the survey, one imagines oneself lying on a sofa while a bald bearded man commands, 'So tell me about your mother.' Geometrical illustrations are displayed on-screen side-by-side and the dating site member is asked to select his or her favorite. Strange, dreamy images reminiscent of the surrealist work of Luis Bu?uel and Salvador Dali appear on-screen, and would-be members are asked to title them. Once registrants have noted their personal preferences as well, they receive a number of matches ranked by percentage of accuracy. Dr. Schmale points out that the system's own fine-tuning is as much about the right combination of personality traits as it is about "the ever-changing socio-psychological states concerning what people expect in partnership." So, as humans evolve and adapt, ideally, so does the system.

The science of love, though eons old, is clearly becoming increasingly fascinating and poignant to people in the Tech Era. "The ultimate dream in this field is to be able to predict who will fall in love with who," says ScientificMatch.com's Holzle, "We're just hitting the tip of the ice burg." For Chemistry.com's Dr. Fisher a broader understanding of love's multi-faceted mosaic is needed: "The cultural component is enormous. You can have someone who's biologically perfect for you but you're interested in playing Beethoven and they're interested in riding their motorcycle." She adds, "And then 'timing' is neither biology nor culture. They all play a role."

At the end of the day, despite each service's steadfast belief that theirs holds the correct love methodology, it isn't just about genes, algorithms, statistics and charts. Paiq.nl's van Vliegen admonishes: "We don't recommend that people base the rest of their lives on just what our neural network says." There is of course that human touch: "Instead we very much encourage people to find out for themselves and interact with each other." And free will is something we humans may never evolve past.