For the first time, Ethiopia’s tallest and shortest people met. Despite the fact that our height is a biological truth over which you have no control, it may have unintended effects on our future. BBC Future looked into the research to discover how they affected things like sexual attractiveness, financial security, and general life expectancy. Money and power are tightly intertwined. Abraham Lincoln would tower above Barack Obama at 6ft 4in while being just 3in (8cm) higher than the average American (193cm). New research backs up this theory by showing that taller candidates get more votes. Apart from presidential elections, taller men and women are perceived to be stronger, healthier, and more educated, and hence are more likely to be chosen for more competitive jobs and earn more money. We usually connect height with “greatness” and “dominance,” two crucial leadership attributes. Because height affects childhood nutrition, it may only serve as a more general predictor of your upbringing, influencing your education and future performance.
In reality, not all great achievements are seen as giants by men (Winston Churchill and Martin Luther King exuded charisma despite being on the short side). On the other hand, taller persons may have an advantage based just on initial impressions. Men who are tall and statuesque are more alluring. Taller men and women are rated as more beautiful in research after study. Surprisingly, just looking at someone’s face may reveal their height, therefore a mugshot on a dating site will not conceal a smaller frame. Tall women do not appear to enjoy the same dating advantages as women of regular height, notwithstanding their reputation as supermodels. If it draws attention away from other traits, a lanky body can be a mixed blessing for males. Women’s perceptions of penis size were studied in a recent study. Surprisingly, the larger a man’s penis seemed to be, the more handsome he seemed overall. Males in higher social positions may have inflated women’s expectations, and when they didn’t meet them, they were harshly reprimanded. After all, not everything you hear about “big-footed males” is accurate.
