http://www.hiscox.com/news/press-releases/2008/02-09-08.aspx
Somehow, I managed to find the actual, orginial link this time, despite only being able to find references before. Testosterone levels were measured via saliva, and confirmed that pretty much every woman in the study was turned off by that sad little heap of a car, the Polo. The study wasn't nearly as exhaustive as it could have been, but I don't see much reason to think other standard I4s would have much of a different effect.
Let's break down this "study" in detail.
New clinical research released today proves that the sound of a luxury car engine appeals to our primal instincts, surprisingly more so for women, even if they claim to have no interest in cars.
Real scientific studies don't "prove" anything, they only provide evidence in support of or contradicting a hypothesis.
hey listened to the roaring engines of a Maserati, a Lamborghini and a Ferrari; and they were also exposed to a recording of a Volkswagen Polo
Which Maserati? Which Lamborghini? Which Ferrari? Why generalize Ferraris, Maseratis and Lamborghinis when specifically pointing out the VW Polo? What year are all these vehicles? Why those cars in particular? Why not a Rolls Royce or Mercedes Benz engine for luxury cars? Why not a Corolla or Civic engine for a non-luxury car?
By the way, you do know that Ferrari made 4 cylinder vehicles, right? And Maserati made 4 cylinder race cars? Also, wouldn't a VW Polo be a luxury car to you? You know, with power windows, air conditioning, radio, and other refinements?
Despite nearly 60% of female participants admitting they were nowhere near as passionate about cars as their male counterparts
Is it just the females saying this, or was this actually measured?
the women actually exceeded the men when it came to experiencing driving excitement, showing that their preferences were over-shadowed by their basic instincts.
Their basic instincts? I wasn't aware that that site was Jalopnik. That's quite presumptuous of a statement in a "scientific study".
David Moxon conducted the experiments on 40 participants, 20 men and 20 women
Sample size of 40? That's it? Is that even statistically significant?
Each participant was exposed to a variety of car engine sound tracks for 30 seconds. The cars used were:
20 minutes or 30 seconds? That's not very clear. If they waited 20 minutes before measuring testosterone, isn't that a bit... delayed?
The data captured was then analysed accordingly.
What is "measured accordingly"?
Where's the detailed analysis methodology? How did they solicit and choose the participants? Why did they settle on 40 participants? How many people did they contact/got interest from? What's the "success" rate? What works were referenced by the author? I highly doubt this one study captured everything including demonstrating that increased testosterone indicated increased arousal. Also, why is there no mentioning of controlling the sample size or analysis for age or education or income or a host of other environmental factors?
A huge part of any credible scientific study is that all data and methodology is presented for scrutiny, and also for repeatability, by other researchers and academics. I don't see any information in here beyond the cursory that gives me any information about how the study was actually conducted and "analyzed" itself.
This isn't even close to the standards of a "scientific study", and I'm barely scratching the surface of the problems and issues with this "study".
Please cite a study published in a
peer-reviewed journal, and direct from either the journal's website or a journal clearinghouse (ie. JSTOR). An abstract will suffice.
Otherwise, your claims have absolutely no scientific basis whatsoever.
--
I actually really like the utility of wagons, especially fast, quiet ones. However, this Chrysler Newport was from the day and age when wagons were the equivalent to modern minivans, and this car evokes the same Happy Days image.
I think that most SUVs are pretty awful to look at, simply because of their massive size. The Tahoe is one of the worst, IMHO. I love wagons, as they're sedans but with added practicality and even more stealth. Some of the prettiest wagons:
*Hot Wagons*
Those look fantastic.
To each his own. I don't like SUVs, but it doesn't mean I can't like the people who drive/like them.
