So many of the things I love, if I’m being honest with myself, are kind of funny-looking: that glittery bag that blinds my husband when I pull it out of the closet. My inexplicable attraction to Benedict Cumberbatch. My ancient pug, Tang Tang. It’s not just that I love them in spite of the fact that they’re funny-looking, though. It’s actually the opposite: I’m drawn to them because of it, because there’s something about the blend of ugly and cute that I just find so mysteriously appealing. Tang Tang is quintessentially pug — bug eyes, flat face, droopy wrinkles — which is to say, Tang Tang looks a little like an old cartoon man, or maybe a gargoyle. And I love it.

And I’m far from the only one — yes, pugs and bulldogs and their funny-looking canine brethren are widely popular, but it’s also not hard to find someone who will squeal with delight over a blobfish, a sloth, a hairless cat, or a naked mole rat. Although aesthetics like “ugly” and “cute” are subjective, a few animals are commonly considered to live in the space where the two meet — even though these are also animals with dour expressions, asymmetrical faces, and/or sunken, pale bodies. Why, then, do they seem so cuddly?

Let’s take a step back. It’s not hard to figure out why humans are drawn to cute things. The scientific name for this is baby schema: We experience an emotional pull to things with exaggerated features — like a large head, big eyes, and a round face or bodily shape — because they remind us of, well, babies.