Cyber-sex, war, and erection-inducing drugs are a recipe for a more socially inept, violent culture, according to a panel of top US sex experts. The concern was raised as researchers discussed “The Future of Sex” at an unprecedented summit near Santa Fe, New Mexico, late last week.

“The de-interaction of sex is something I worry about,” said Julia Heiman, director of the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction. “If we go too much in the direction of virtual sex, what’s left out? How you get along in a personal sphere is getting short shrift,” Heiman said in a conference call with reporters.

Erection-stimulating drugs such as Viagra could exacerbate the “individualization” of sex, said professor John Gagnon of the State University of New York at Stony Brook. “The other part of the couple may not be consenting to the erection,” Gagnon said. “The assumption is the woman will be happy if the fellow arrives with one.”

The Internet is increasingly a place for people with shared interests to form online communities and for people to seek dates or mates, said Pepper Schwartz, a professor of sociology at the University of Washington.

“Every country, no matter how undeveloped, has dating sites,” Schwartz said. “My experience is people want to get offline as quick as possible. People are looking for partners, looking for love.”

The Internet could also serve as a trove of information dispelling misconceptions about sexual lifestyles, health and trends, according to panelists.

Lots of topics worth discussing– and no coverage in the U.S. press. This is from a French news service via an Australian science newsletter.