In prehistoric times, pairs of humans had a better chance of survival than any solo human, so genetic selection favored people who “attached”-or learned how to develop close bonds with others. Psychologists believe this brain wiring is an evolutionary adaptation. Our brains’ attachment systems create, monitor, and maintain our connections with the people who matter to us. But by understanding how attachment drives us, we can achieve less conflict and more harmony in our relationships.Īttached: The New Science of Adult Attachment is based on the premise that people are biologically driven to seek intimacy and closeness with a significant other. If two partners’ attachment responses fall on opposing ends of the spectrum, clashes are inevitable. Some people feel the attachment urge and automatically want to resist it or suppress it. Even though every human is wired with this urge for closeness, we respond to its pull in different ways. He added that orcas have been known to prey on adult blue, fin and humpback whales, all of which can grow to be bigger than grays.Many of the problems we face in our romantic relationships stem from our attachment systems, a mechanism in our brains that compels us to seek intimacy and closeness with a chosen partner-both physically and emotionally.

Should this trend continue, drone footage showing the whales' size and thickness could be a clue to their wellness. At the moment, he said there's not enough information to determine whether the orca population is suffering from food deprivation. Friedlaender said the gamble to attack two adults was a matter of 'risk-reward,' meaning the reward of feasting on more whale meat must be weighed against the higher risk of sustaining injury. While taking on adults is a big challenge, hunger is also a potent motivator. In that case, the attacks could signify an underlying problem with the gray whale population.

For instance, one potential reason for orcas to continually attack adults is that significantly fewer gray whale calves are available. However, if orcas continue to attack adult gray whales, scientists might see the behavior as a sign of an underlying problem, Friedlaender continued. 'A single event is really something you don't want to raise too big a flag over,' Friedlaender explained. Still, one attack doesn't necessarily imply a troubling pattern, Friedlaender said.

The new science of adult attachment