I didn't bother to read the articles, so it may have already been explored - this discrepancy in sucess b/w the tall and beautiful and short and ugly, probably has to do more with the candidates themsevles, then the people who do the hiring/promoting. While I can't argue that people in general are more attracted to - whether consciously (in some fields, you HAVE to meet a specific set of physical requirements) or subconsciously - tall and beautiful people, I think the explanation is largely due to the differences in self-confidence. The people who are tall and beautiful, will most likely have gone through a lifetime of positive experiences with people, repeated social reinforcement of behaviors and mental states, that lead them to develop into very confident and social people. Being confident and having great social skills, versus being meek and having poor social skills makes a BIG difference in your professional AND personal life.
For me, the extremes trigger off a switch in my head that tells me not to trust this physician. So if you're WAY too hot, I assume that you're a superficial person who may not be completely "on the ball" with your job, that you must be in it for the ego, etc. For instance, I once visited a cosmetic clinic and the "dermatician" who performs the laser treatment, looked like she had at least 10 different operations on her - she was sexy as hell, but something inside me just though "yea, she might be into helping people and stuff, but she's probably in it for the money...so can I trust her to think about me first?? No, she'll be thinking about the sale". On the other end, if you're way to unkempt and ugly, I can't explain it, but I just don't trust people who look like they can't maintain some standard of grooming and self-respect.
It doesn't work this way in medicine guys - not even in business.
As long as you look normal and decent, are in healthy shape (not necessarily like you work out a lot), well groomed - what you should be more concerned about is your social skills, your personality, and how well you build rapport with others.
