Steven and Luciano, from the Omni Calculator team, created the Drake Equation for Love Calculator to help you calculate how many potential partners are in your area, based on a few key variables. It's based on the Drake Equation which estimates the number of active, communicative extraterrestrial civilizations in the Milky Way Galaxy, as well as on the work done by Peter Backus, a lecturer in economics.

"Your personal standards for a potential partner play a significant role in your chances of finding love," Steven explained to Bored Panda. "If you have high, rigid standards focused on perfection, finding someone who meets all of those criteria can be challenging. Holding onto an idealized image of what a partner should be like can prevent you from seeing and appreciating the good qualities in potential partners who may not match that image perfectly."

Meanwhile, changing your standards and moving away from perfectionism can actually improve your chances of finding love. "You can expand your pool of potential partners by being more flexible and open to the idea of a partner who may not meet all of your criteria. In addition, you can allow yourself to see the good in people you may have previously dismissed," the physicist told us.

We wanted to get Steven's opinion on what someone should do if they've been putting in tons of effort but were unable to find a partner. Patience, persistence, and positivity are key.

"Be bold, put yourself out there, and be open to new experiences. Take the initiative and ask someone on a date. You never know where it might lead," he gave some spot-on advice.

"Be patient and be positive. You may have to wait a while to meet the right person, but stay optimistic that you will someday."

Meanwhile, we also wanted to learn a bit more about the Drake Equation for Love Calculator that both Steven and Luciano came up with.

"The Drake Equation for Love Calculator came from some work by Peter Backus, who wondered one day why he didn't have a girlfriend and how many potential matches might be out there. He connected that problem with the famous Drake Equation used for estimating the number of alien civilizations in our galaxy. You start with a population of stars (or people) and then apply factors that narrow down the number. For example, what faction of stars have planets (what faction of people are female), and how many of those planets have the conditions to support life (what faction of females are in the suitable age range)?" the physicist explained.

"Peter did a calculation for himself, so we created a calculator so anyone could do a similar analysis for themselves. Gathering all the data was the main challenge. Most of it comes from the US census, which is convenient, but it needs to be filtered and organized into a form we can use in the calculator," Steven said.

He added that a potential update in the future might include some common interests that people have. "Surveys might be a way to estimate what faction of the population like different things."

At the end of the day, what matters the most isn’t how Instagrammable your Valentine’s Day gift looks. What matters is that you spread some love and make someone you care about smile.

The real victory isn’t about boasting about it on the internet (though there’s nothing wrong about doing it), it’s about expressing your love, respect, and admiration. The effort and care that you put in both speak for themselves!

What your partner really wants is to feel special. Don’t just get them some random card or gift that you picked up at the gas station. It’s very impersonal. A smaller gift that’s tailored to your soulmate is bound to be a greater hit than a dozen roses and a generic box of chocolate (unless they actually like the cheesiness), no matter how much they might cost. We impress others with our feelings and dedication, not the size of our wallets.

Think about what your partner might actually want to get or do on Valentine’s Day. Maybe they’ve mentioned something to you recently. Though every single day should be like Valentine’s Day, in practice, it’s hard to do. But never forget that you’ve got the rest of the year to be incredibly romantic. Don’t be shy—surprise your partner when they least expect it. 

How much importance you place on gifts will really depend on you and your partner. Some people show their love in different ways. Others like giving and receiving tokens of affection. So if you know for a fact that your partner loves gifts, you’d do well to put in the time and effort to make or buy one for them, even if you might not be a big fan of gift-giving yourself.

Similarly, if your loved one isn’t all that into physical gifts, you might surprise them with a fun trip or an unusual experience. They might want a major distraction from their everyday problems. Your solution could be anything from a bubble bath to a surprise live concert at the place you two met all those years ago.

What are you doing this Valentine’s Day, dear Pandas? How are you surprising your significant other? What gifts or cards did you receive this year? We’d love to hear from you, so feel free to pop down by the comment section to share your thoughts.