bi the way

[FerociousFeline]

They just came out with a study showing that het women and hom men have similar brains. Also, het men and hom women have similar brains.

This isn't particularly surprising to me, but what WAS surprising.....is that I myself share the characteristic traits of both brains. I would wager that most bi people do. (example: I have incredibly spatial ability AND I'm not bad with language either)

For more information:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/jun/16/neuroscience.psychology

[FerociousFeline]

Actually it was based on brain scans showing various parts of the brain with a look at what those parts of the brain actually do. Spatial holistic ability (or the ability to build a 3 dimensional image in one's minds eye, and then having the ability to turn that model around inside of your mind, has traditionally been a trait that het men have displayed a markedly higher score on than any other group.) While typically, het women have shown on average a superior ability to string words and sentences together to convey an intricate message reflecting that of their emotional state. These aren't stereotypes, but rather based on collected evidence which matches the various abilities TO brain development.

The only part I wonder if they misreported is WHICH side of the brain that these functions are actually centered in. (right brain is generally accepted to be home of the Yin, the emotional, the language centers etc, but in the article they seemed to attribute Yang energy function to right brain dominant hemisphere....which could be a typo, but other than that, the information is sound as far as I can tell.)

This information is HUGE. What this really tells the world is that for the first time in history we have ACTUAL scientific proof that homosexual behavior is rooted in brain chemistry, AND that the brain chemistry of hom is identical to opposite sex het who is seeking the same gender partner.

Everyone can draw their own conclusions about this data, it's relevance and it's interpretation, but for me what this really says is .....

Given this data, there is no longer ANY PLAUSIBLE ARGUMENT to withhold legal pairings of same sex couples. (I don't care if you call it civil unions, marriage, handfasting or whatever.) For a culture who swears by the scientific method.....we now have specific PROOF that people behave the way they do based on brain chemistry and therefore NO religious dogma, questions of ethics, questions of morals actually enter into the equation.

But as all of you who know me have always known......personally, I believe it is best said that Homosexuality is the Creators way of ensuring that EVERYONE ......has someone to Love.


FF

[FalconAngel]

This sounds like it was based on bad stereotypes (e.g.-Gay men and women have a bad sense of direction and navigate using landmarks).

Actually, navigating by landmarks is a common behavior amongst both genders. Some people are just better at it than others. :P

Trust me on this one...I used to teach land navigation in the Army.

[jamieknyc]

At best, this is a poorly understood science, and no one should go around drawing political assumptions from the the findings of some study. Especially since tomorrow or the day after, some other scientist will publish a study asserting the opposite.

[FerociousFeline]

At best, this is a poorly understood science, and no one should go around drawing political assumptions from the the findings of some study. Especially since tomorrow or the day after, some other scientist will publish a study asserting the opposite.

No, what no one should do is not pay attention to what is being said and then pop off some inane disclaimer that will dismiss attention from a truly newsworthy event.

:)

[bigirl_inwv]

It's studies like these that further scientific findings. The goal of science is to prove and disprove findings, correct? I mean, otherwise, we wouldn't know many of the things we do know today.

While this study may not be 100% accurate..and it may very well be disputed by another study with opposing evidence...it's a step.

So while I would take any study with a grain of salt...I wouldn't totally discount it either. Hell, they are dealing with the brain. That's a part of the human body scientists don't know a whole lot about to start with, much less the role that its development plays in sexuality.

[Papelucho]

Actually it was based on brain scans showing various parts of the brain with a look at what those parts of the brain actually do. Spatial holistic ability (or the ability to build a 3 dimensional image in one's minds eye, and then having the ability to turn that model around inside of your mind, has traditionally been a trait that het men have displayed a markedly higher score on than any other group.) While typically, het women have shown on average a superior ability to string words and sentences together to convey an intricate message reflecting that of their emotional state. These aren't stereotypes, but rather based on collected evidence which matches the various abilities TO brain development.

The only part I wonder if they misreported is WHICH side of the brain that these functions are actually centered in. (right brain is generally accepted to be home of the Yin, the emotional, the language centers etc, but in the article they seemed to attribute Yang energy function to right brain dominant hemisphere....which could be a typo, but other than that, the information is sound as far as I can tell.)...



This study is very interesting. I believe that this article addresses gender roles, not sexual orientation, but I believe that the last part of this statement from the doctor applies to both:

"These differences might be laid down during brain development in the womb, or they could happen after birth, though it could very likely be a combination of the two,"

To defend the "after birth" aspect of this argument...
Understanding spatial properties and linguistics are different types of intelligences, according to Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences. These intelligences do not remain constant throughout life, but they can improve with practice. It is not surprising that heterosexual males are more spatially intelligent on average or that heterosexual females are more linguistically intelligent on average.

For one thing, males are more naturally kinisthetic learners, which means that they best understand the world through doing, and using their sense of touch. This is more hardwired than having spatial intelligence, although it is just a tendency of males, not absolute. More importantly, I think, is that boys in our society are encouraged to be aware of their physical surroundings, through sports, games, etc. This would increase their spatial intelligence from a young age.

Girls on the other hand, have more connections between the two hemispheres of their brains than boys (left side is logical and right side is creative), which means that they can use both parts simultaneously. This is a powerful tool in communication. Combine that with the way society encourages girls to be more social and less active. (While the boys are off playing sports, the girls are talking). All of this would increase girls' linguistic intelligence.

Gender is socially constructed, and this article proves that clearly. I don't think that it directly addresses the causes of homosexuality though. Also, there were only 90 people in this study, and they were volunteers.

I believe that sexual orientation, like gender, is a combination of what happens during brain development in the womb, and what happens after birth. Nature and nurture.

What does everybody else think?



More about Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligences:
(http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm)

[bisexualinsocal]

SCIENCE strikes again!

[gfofbiguy]

She blinded me with ............. SCIENCE!:cool:

[eddy10]

The way I was taught ... scientists merely investigate and study to discover the facts, whether the discoveries are useful or not. While engineers find ways to use those findings. Of course, you realize that I are an injunear.