Have you secretly read your significant other's email?

Welcome to the 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair poll for January and happy New Year to one and all. What better way is there to begin 2013 than with a poll dedicated to love? In anticipation of Valentine's Day, the questions delve into the intricacies of romantic love and relationships. Surely other kinds of love are just as strong like that of a parent for their child, but it is our fascination with romantic love that has launched a thousand ships and sold more books and movie tickets than you can count.

To paraphrase Saint Paul, "love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, nor boast nor is it proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self seeking, it keeps no records of wrongs, it rejoices in the truth, it always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres... and of the three great virtues, faith, hope and love, the greatest of these is love." A beautiful sentiment with which to begin this New Year, and now the results of our poll.

Fifty-six percent of Americans believe in love at first sight, and the percentage is even higher for married people and those in relationships, 41 percent do not believe in it. It is often a primal instinct, the concept of "animal attraction" has lead human beings to spectacular success as a procreating species. The addition over time of romantic feelings has helped to civilize and domesticate many people creating some of the organizing foundations for human societies.

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It looks like Neil Sedaka was right, 'breaking up is hard to do". Or at least harder to do. Two-thirds of Americans think it is more difficult to say "it's over" rather than to say "I love you" (24 percent). Whether one feels pain or relief after a break up, there still remains a sense of loss for what might have been.

Eighty-two percent of Americans claim they have never secretly read their significant other's email, while 17 percent admitted that they have. In earlier times the sanctity of U.S. mail was protected by law and society respected the implied expectation of privacy that a personal letter was accorded. It appears that ethos has largely survived into the cyber culture of the 21st century.

Twenty-eight percent of Americans think the marriage vow that is hardest to keep is "for better or for worse." Next in order were, "to be faithful" (26 percent), "in sickness and in health" (17 percent), "for richer or poorer" (15 percent), and another 15 percent had no answer or did not know. More men picked "to be faithful" which might explain why more women chose "for better or for worse".

More than six out of 10 Americans feel that good sex is very important to a successful relationship. Twenty-five percent think it is somewhat important. Six percent do not think it is very important and five percent think it is the most important thing. In other words, not surprisingly, more than 90 percent of people ascribe a level of importance to good sex and or lovemaking within a relationship. That's why it is said that love is what makes the world go around.

When they meet a married man who is not wearing a wedding band, 35 percent of Americans think it's because he doesn't want to appear married. Twenty-eight percent infer that he doesn't like wearing jewelry, 11 percent give him the benefit of the doubt that he forgot to put it on and another 11 percent guess that he is having problems with his spouse. Although wedding rings can be an important symbol of love and fidelity, actions always speak louder.

Forty-five percent of Americans went "old school" and described a man asking the bride's father for her hand in marriage as a necessary courtesy. Thirty-one percent believe it is gallant but not necessary. Eighteen percent feel that it is old-fashioned and embarrassing and a few (three percent) thought it was sexist and offensive. In a world where many older traditions are disappearing from our culture, this time honored nicety seems to be holding it's own.

Two out of three Americans would be like Dragnet's Joe Friday and stick with "just the facts" when it comes to telling their children where babies come from. Twenty-one percent would fall back on the old-fashioned "birds and the bees" explanation, six percent would let them find out on their own and five percent would let the stork deliver the news. Learning about the facts of life is a rite of passage for every child or adolescent, and most Americans think it is best delivered by straight honest facts.

Thirty-six percent of those living with someone in a committed relationship chose their partner's TV choices as the thing that drives them the most crazy about living with them. Sixteen percent said doing more chores, 13 percent chose sharing a bathroom, eight percent picked late night bedside reading, seven percent said sharing a bed and 21 percent weren't sure. It's actually pretty encouraging that TV choices won out. That means the fundamentals of a happy domestic life and partnership remain intact for a large number of Americans.

Seventy-two percent of Americans have closed minds when it comes to "open" relationships. Forty-seven percent think they are a mistake and 25 percent think they are a sin. Nine percent see them as a myth and seven percent see them as a godsend. It seems that some vestiges of America's puritanical heritage remain with us.

Seventy-one percent of Americans feel that they get along well with their S.O.'s family. Twelve percent said there is "no love lost" between them, six percent say "they like me but I don't like them" and five percent say the opposite. Whether one sees them as in-laws or outlaws it is good for relationships to go along and get along with your partner's family.

This poll was conducted at the CBS News interviewing facility among a random sample of 1,100 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone November 16-19, 2012. Phone numbers were dialed from random digit dial samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups is higher. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.