When a trial attorney asked to use [Dr. Alan] Hirsch's research about food preferences and personality to help pick a jury, Hirsch had a warning: "I told him not to pick people who like cheese curls," he says. "They're very moral, have very high standards and see things in black-and-white. You don't want this person on a jury, especially if your guy might be guilty.The one word that describes them is 'integrity.' "

Hirsch, a psychiatrist and neurologist, has written a book, "What's Your Food Sign? How To Use Food Clues To Find Lasting Love."

As founder of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, Hirsch is best-known for his work with odors — how some turn you on or help you lose weight, while others keep you awake at night. He's done more than 180 studies on sensory phenomena and disorders and has 80 others in the works.

With all due respect, it sounded a smidge like a junior-high science-fair project to me, albeit one that spanned 20 years and involved 18,631 people. Hirsch began by giving people a battery of personality tests, then asked their food preferences. Then he took that data and looked for correlations. He found clear links between what people ate and how they acted, and at least one finding took him totally by surprise.

"People who liked foods I would consider to be very blah and bland, like vanilla or pretzels, turned out to be the personalities that were the most spicy and craved novelty," he says. "It's almost like, if they have it in their personalities, they don't need to have it in their food."

When it comes to compatibility, however, things don't always make sense. Pretzel people, for example, who are quirky, fun, lively and energetic, are most compatible with other pretzel lovers, ambitious potato-chip people or cheese-curl fans. But it turns out that cheese-curl people are most compatible with either potato-chippers or the perfectionist tortilla-chip types.

The whole project originally was supposed to have psychiatric applications, but it turned out to be relevant in other realms, like jury selection and hiring practices. Hirsch recommends using his findings as a possible screening tool: "Take them out to lunch and see what they order." Hirsch says his results might be useful for finding out possible mates at cocktail parties or in singles bars. Just pay attention to the cheese shapes they choose or what kind of vodka they order.

As for cheese-curl fanatics, according to Hirsch's findings, they're fussy about cleanliness, keep spotless houses and never clutter their desks.