Forty-four per cent of men are looking to score on the first date while 66 per cent of women believe that the man should foot the bill for dinner. These are just a couple of the statistics that FastLife, Canada’s premium speed dating and singles events provider, and international online dating giant Lavalife, recently discovered.

Standing all of five foot three in my bare feet, I’m willing to admit that I’m short. In fact, I still use a stool to reach things on the top shelves of my kitchen cabinets.

Yet when it comes to dating, size does still matter: I want to date someone who has a few extra inches on me. Apparently, I’m not alone.

By VALERIE GIBSON

Picky, picky, picky.

That's singles today. And I'm one of them.

Years ago, it was enough that a prospective partner was reasonably attractive, had a good sense of humour and was available. Now the "requirement" list is the length of a roll of paper towels and someone isn't acceptable unless every box is checked.

Never mind soulmates. People are looking for supermates.
Singles justify it by stating they "won't settle for less" and "I'm worth it" — whether the latter is realistically balanced against the list or not.

Single reporter Andrew Fenton goes undercover speed dating. Read his story here.

Nightclubs are out and the Internet is in. Joanne Dixon finds out how successful and safe the new methods of finding potential partners, such as online dating and speed dating, really are.

While speed dating may not be a new concept, its increasing popularity among young, attractive and professional singles is surprising many. The concept has given rise to degustation dating, combining fine foods, and hopefully, a fine liaison too.

I was very impressed with Fast Impressions
— it was very hip — and I like that you don't sign yourself up for events, rather they invite you to events that are best suited to the type of person you want to meet. It's a great way to pretty much guarantee you'll come away from the night with a damn good chance of getting a date with someone.

The concept of being wined and dined in style by 10 gorgeous women was too great a temptation for 5 of the boys at Channel 7 to resist. So "Sunrise" sent the single boys out to taste test Fast Impressions Degustation Dating.

Wednesday, 7.45pm. I'm drinking in a fashionable inner-city bar surrounded by 10 good-looking guys, all of whom have paid to speak to me. I'm excited, flattered and slightly nervous. I imagine the other nine girls standing next to me feel exactly the same.

Speed dating, developed by an American rabbi in 1998, is a fun and sexy way to meet like-minded singles, Clara Iaccarino writes. Just take your stopwatch with you.

Confession: I'm addicted to speed dating. I'm not sure whether it's the buzz of meeting new people or the flirtatious excitement that engulfs a room of 20 singles, but whatever it is, I've been to two speed dating events within a week.