Gender differences in brains

D

DerpiesFreud

Expert Member
Joined
Apr 23, 2009
Messages
2,393
Reaction score
4
Location
The Internet
Biologically men and women are different,in terms of genitals and other sex organs.
But are our brains different too?(I`m not talking about variations,I`m talking about distinct lack of xyz in men/women)

I`m assuming that male and female brains are identical

So if for example if you stimulate a certain spot on a man`s penis,and transfer that exact electrical signal in his brain into a woman`s brain in the exact same spot as the man.

then
1.She should feel exactly the same as if she had a penis?
or
2.would it feel like her vagina is being stimulated?

I remember they stimulated the pain of giving birth in men,did they do a similar thing as I described?
Could they do a similar thing?

in the case of 1,does that mean if we wore electrodes or similar stuff,we could 'feel' what its like to be of the opposite gender?

in the case of 2,Not sure if there`s any benefit in this case.
Perhaps someone can point me in the location of literature in this aspect?
 
Fission you've got a talent for creating threads that are destined to go sideways.
 
nukefission said:
Biologically men and women are different,in terms of genitals and other sex organs.
But are our brains different too?(I`m not talking about variations,I`m talking about distinct lack of xyz in men/women)

I`m assuming that male and female brains are identical

So if for example if you stimulate a certain spot on a man`s penis,and transfer that exact electrical signal in his brain into a woman`s brain in the exact same spot as the man.

then
1.She should feel exactly the same as if she had a penis?
or
2.would it feel like her vagina is being stimulated?

I remember they stimulated the pain of giving birth in men,did they do a similar thing as I described?
Could they do a similar thing?

in the case of 1,does that mean if we wore electrodes or similar stuff,we could 'feel' what its like to be of the opposite gender?

in the case of 2,Not sure if there`s any benefit in this case.
Perhaps someone can point me in the location of literature in this aspect?
Click to expand...

Pain is a subjective thing. As is any nerve impulse (Penis stimulation). Your body translates the message into something that is meaningful to you. So stimulating the same nerves or region of the brain in a woman would result in her feeling a sensation in her Clitoris, because the Penis is simply a testosterone filled and enlarged clitoris.
She would no more feel a sensation in a penis that she doesn't have, than we would feel sensation in the labia that we don't have, if those same nerves were stimulated.
The brain will simply translate the messages into something meaningful to the individual.

The cases of phantom limbs would not apply to this scenario, as people with phantom limb sensations, are feeling things that their bodies' once possessed. A woman has never possessed a penis.
Although I would be interested to know what sensation a ,"woman" that used to be a man, would feel when stimulated. Especially at 1 year intervals, after the opp and into the future. The rate at which the body forgets what it used to have would be an interesting study. Although not much use I don't think.
 
in early foetal development, the release of testosterone in males retards the growth of the corpus callosum (the "bridge" between the two brain hemispheres). as a result, female brains have an advantage when it comes to activities requiring a strong interaction between the right and left sides of the brain (hence female "intuition").

males are less "distracted" by the left brain when performing logical tasks and are better suited to zoning in to these tasks.

it also explains to a degree the perceived multitasking capabilities of females (this multitasking actually results in lowered overall performance - it's more efficient to focus on one discrete task at a time), as they can creatively think about one thing while logically think about another at the same time more easily than males can.
 
droplet said:
in early foetal development, the release of testosterone in males retards the growth of the corpus callosum (the "bridge" between the two brain hemispheres). as a result, female brains have an advantage when it comes to activities requiring a strong interaction between the right and left sides of the brain (hence female "intuition").

males are less "distracted" by the left brain when performing logical tasks and are better suited to zoning in to these tasks.

it also explains to a degree the perceived multitasking capabilities of females (this multitasking actually results in lowered overall performance - it's more efficient to focus on one discrete task at a time), as they can creatively think about one thing while logically think about another at the same time more easily than males can.
Click to expand...

This.

Females have a more developed corpus callosum.

Brains aren't identical.
 
men are generally smarter than women. This is true for most mammals

For example scientists that study polar bears tend to study males as they exhibit a larger intelligence. That is also noted in chimpanzees. I believe it has something to do with courtships, males are more innovative and intelligent because its a requirement that is needed to impress females to earn the right to mate. They also have to out perform their rivals.

Of course this would be different for human beings though on a base level we are still mammals and our genetic heritage should still play a factor.

That said by no means does this mean women are stupid. It would simply imply that the pinacle of human capacity would result in the perfect male would be intellectually superior to the perfect female.
 
RiaX said:
men are generally smarter than women. This is true for most mammals

For example scientists that study polar bears tend to study males as they exhibit a larger intelligence. That is also noted in chimpanzees. I believe it has something to do with courtships, males are more innovative and intelligent because its a requirement that is needed to impress females to earn the right to mate. They also have to out perform their rivals.

Of course this would be different for human beings though on a base level we are still mammals and our genetic heritage should still play a factor.

That said by no means does this mean women are stupid. It would simply imply that the pinacle of human capacity would result in the perfect male would be intellectually superior to the perfect female.
Click to expand...

This has been proven by hundreds of peer reviewed studies (and disproved by one, which made news in a man bites dog story). Got to do with sample sizes and standard deviations and ****. It makes a good case for treating men and women differently, in other words sexism. Next topic - intelligence differences between races.

But you've gone off topic. The question was about brain wiring, not intelligence. He's made an interesting point. Kind of like the old "dose your brain interpret red the same way my brain does" question. I'm interested in the answers he finds.
 
wiring is done by experience. So that would be dependent on the life one has lead.

Take for example teenagers. They are irrational and erractic in behavior because they have a messy network in the brain (with hormones surging causing developmental changes). However an adult has the same amounts of hormones following. So why does a 16 year old teenager behave differently from a 24 year old adult. Simple the brain has optimized its neurons for greater efficiency.

So from that modality one could say that this aspect would be related to life experience
 
Men and women are very different, especially in the way they think and perceive. Its so interesting. Men think more one dimensionally and women are more multidimensional. Thats why I enjoy talking to women more ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X