Turns out that inability to make conversation starts around the time you start thinking about talking to a woman, according to a new report from Behavioural Science Institute at the Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands. A pair of studies conducted by the teams suggest that men’s “cognitive performance declined if they were led to believe that they interacted with a woman via a computer (Study 1) or even if they merely anticipated an interaction with a woman (Study 2).” An actual interaction with a woman does not have to occur; the anticipation or expectation of speaking to a member of the opposite sex is enough to make the brains of heterosexual males go haywire. The same is not true for straight women who think about talking to men. (Sorry, guys.)

Unfortunately, the report doesn’t offer any advice on how to overcome sudden, acute cognitive disability. It seems women just make men kinda stupid. Feel free to share your tips and tricks in the comments, guys. [NCBI]