Determining virginity is tough, because you have to first define the term, and then get people to be honest about their sexual histories. Mary Delaney Cooke / Corbis / Getty Images

Lifelong virgins are not uncommon in nature. In some social insect communities – bees, ants and wasps, for example – a small percentage of individuals are “breeders,” and almost everybody else works their butts off taking care of their kids (#nojudgment). In other animals, like elephant seals, a few males monopolize the mating scene, which leads to an awful lot of dudes who live in complete celibacy. Around 80 percent of male elephant seals never even get the chance to mate, but those 20 percent who do might inseminate up to 250 females in their lifetime.

But between 12-14 percent of adults aged 20-24 have never had sex

That’s a tough question to answer. Accordingly, the data is not crystal clear. After all, if all you want to know is who passes on their genes, who cares if a person touches one body part to another person’s body part? What’s the difference between a woman who’s never had a sexual encounter, a woman whose sexual partners have all been women, and a woman who never has children due to polycystic ovary syndrome or some other condition preventing her from conceiving? Read more