Kissing Randomness

When a Kiss is More than a Kiss (NYTimes) The article comes out of the recent hoopla surrounding Richard Gere and Indian actress Shilpa Shetty. It also mentions other public kisses by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (president of Iran), Al/Tipper Gore, Hillary Clinton, and mobsters.

Random facts from the article:

• Romans identified 3 different kinds of kisses: basium - standard romantic kiss, osculum - friendship kiss, savium - the passionate "french kiss"
• Monkeys don't kiss, though apes do to show respect (Only on the arm/chest)
• Earliest written record of kissing comes from Sanskrit, 1500 BC
• Is kissing an innate human act? There is debate. Some argue it comes from the mother passing prechewed food to the baby. Yum-o