Can Science Predict the Length of a Relationship?

Science and mathematics has traditionally done a rather good job of predicting how seemingly opaque reactions will occur in the world. Whether it’s what happens when we drop a stone from a specific height, when two chemicals are mixed together or when you add two number together – maths and science can usually give us a reasonably accurate prediction of what will happen.

But what about when it comes to things like emotion, or love? Can subjects like chemistry, physics and mathematics predict when two people will fall for each other, or how long that relationship is likely to last?

According research complied for an incredibly interesting infographic from Serenata Flowers, there is a mathematical formula for predicting the length of any given relationship, and it looks like this:

8 + .5Y – .2P + .9Hm + .3Mf + J – .3G – .5(Sm – Sf)2 + I + 1.5C = predicted number of years

To help you decode that rather tricky equation, here’s the key:

Y = Number of years the two people knew each other beforehand

P = The number of previous partners of both people added together

Hm = The importance the male attaches to honesty in the relationship

Mf = The importance the female attached to money in the relationship

J = The importance both partners attach to humour (added together)

G = The importance both partners attach to looks (added together)

Sm and Sf = The importance the male and female attach to good sex

I = The importance attached to having good in-laws (added together)

C = The importance attached to children in the relationship (added together)

All importance measures can be scaled from 1-5, where 1 is not important at all and 5 is very important.

So, the next time you’re wondering how long you and your partner might stay together, you can pull out this handy mathematical equation and let science do the work for you!