Posted on 11/28/2006 6:32:35 AM PST by TigerLikesRooster
Women talk three times as much as men, says study
By FIONA MACRAE
Last updated at 13:39pm on 28th November 2006
Women talk almost three times as much as men, according to the research.
It is something one half of the population has long suspected - and the other half always vocally denied. Women really do talk more than men.
In fact, women talk almost three times as much as men, with the average woman chalking up 20,000 words in a day - 13,000 more than the average man.
Women also speak more quickly, devote more brainpower to chit-chat - and actually get a buzz out of hearing their own voices, a new book suggests.
The book - written by a female psychiatrist - says that inherent differences between the male and female brain explain why women are naturally more talkative than men.
In The Female Mind, Dr Luan Brizendine says women devote more brain cells to talking than men.
And, if that wasn't enough, the simple act of talking triggers a flood of brain chemicals which give women a rush similar to that felt by heroin addicts when they get a high.
Dr Brizendine, a self-proclaimed feminist, says the differences can be traced back to the womb, where the sex hormone testosterone moulds the developing male brain.
The areas responsible for communication, emotion and memory are all pared back the unborn baby boy.
The result is that boys - and men - chat less than their female counterparts and struggle to express their emotions to the same extent.
"Women have an eight-lane superhighway for processing emotion, while men have a small country road," said Dr Brizendine, who runs a female "mood and hormone" clinic in San Francisco.
There are, however, advantages to being the strong, silent type. Dr Brizendine explains that testosterone also reduces the size of the section of the brain involved in hearing - allowing men to become "deaf" to the most logical of arguments put forward by their wives and girlfriends.
But what the male brain may lack in converstation and emotion, they more than make up with in their ability to think about sex.
Dr Brizendine says the brain's "sex processor" - the areas responsible for sexual thoughts - is twice as big as in men than in women, perhaps explaining why men are stereotyped as having sex on the mind.
Or, to put it another way, men have an international airport for dealing with thoughts about sex, "where women have an airfield nearby that lands small and private planes".
Studies have shown that while a man will think about sex every 52 seconds, the subject tends to cross women's minds just once a day, the University of California psychiatrist says.
Dr Brizendine, whose book is based on her own clinical work and analyses of more than 1,000 scientific studies, added: "There is no unisex brain.
"Girls arrive already wired as girls, and boys arrive already wired as boys. Their brains are different by the time they're born, and their brains are what drive their impulses, values and their very reality.
"I know it is not politically correct to say this but I've been torn for years between my politics and what science is telling us.
"I believe women actually perceive the world differently from men.
"If women attend to those differences they can make better decisions about how to manage their lives."
Other scientists, however, are sceptical about the effects of testosterone on the brain and say many of the differences between the male and female personality can be explained by social conditioning, with a child's upbringing greatly influencing their character.
Deborah Cameron, an Oxford University linguistics professor with a special interest in language and gender, said the amount we talk is influenced by who we are with and what we are doing.
She added: "If you aggregate a large number of studies you will find there is little difference between the amount men and women talk."
Already available in the US, The Female Brain will be available in the UK from April.
She is a feminist. She has a trouble saying nice things about men's ability, such as math and spatial reasoning.
We hold these truths to be self-evident...
It's gotta be satire.
Further proof of this is the fans of gossip magazines, judge judy, oxygen...etc. Mostly wimmin.
All these venues are sources of mindnumbing, endless blather.
yackety yackety yaak
I'll never forget this one time a boss of mine needed to wipe his glasses. A coworker had tissues on her desk and he headed toward them. She said,
"Those have lotion in them." (he keeps walking)
"Those have lotion in them." (he reaches for a tissue)
"Those have lotion in them." (he wipes his glasses with tissue.)
Boss: "Argh! These have lotion in them!"
So much for compromise,eh?
Not to be the thread police, but here is yesterday's thread with the usual sarcastic FReeper replies.
Ah yes...a buzz. Now that's scientific.
the simple act of talking triggers a flood of brain chemicals which give women a rush similar to that felt by heroin addicts when they get a high
Oh now I understand because everybody knows all about heroin. Oy.
The book - written by a female psychiatrist - says that inherent differences between the male and female brain explain why women are naturally more talkative than men. In The Female Mind, Dr Luan Brizendine says women devote more brain cells to talking than men.
Devote more brain cells, NEED to devote more brain cells, EXPEND more brain cells, WASTE more brain cells...so many ways to "say" not quite the same thing with fewer words.
Dr Brizendine, a self-proclaimed feminist, says the differences can be traced back to the womb, where the sex hormone testosterone moulds the developing male brain. The areas responsible for communication, emotion and memory are all pared back the unborn baby boy.
Pared back or streamlined?
"Women have an eight-lane superhighway for processing emotion, while men have a small country road," said Dr Brizendine, who runs a female "mood and hormone" clinic in San Francisco.
Exactly what is "processing emotion". It seems to me that the eight-lane superhighway is oftentimes overwhelmed and gridlocked. It sure doesn't seem like an advantage. Particularly if a "mood and hormone" clinic is necessary to tend the roadway.
Dr Brizendine explains that testosterone also reduces the size of the section of the brain involved in hearing - allowing men to become "deaf" to the most logical of arguments put forward by their wives and girlfriends.
Again, "reduces" or "streamlines and finely tunes"? Further, why the assumption that the arguments coming from so much talk is "logical"? It seems to me that logic is not a byproduct of the eight-lane superhigway for processing emotion but is drowned out by all that traffic. But I guess we'll leave that to the "mood and hormone" clinics to sort out.
Surely there are differences between men and women. Of that I have no doubt. Surely those differences are all valuable. I suspect the writer was looking for ways to justify all that heroin buzz she was getting from just talking to these researchers about her brain.
Our quotas for the unimportant get filled quickly, I guess.
What I think is hilarious is that very few men will disagree with the 52 second number.
Is this J-D-able? =)
Women's version:
Woman2: Oh! You got a haircut! That's so cute!
Woman1: Do you think so? I wasn't sure when she gave me the mirror. I mean, you don't think it's too fluffy looking?
Woman2: Oh God no! No, it's perfect. I'd love to get my hair cut like that, but I think my face is too wide. I'm pretty much stuck with this stuff I think.
Woman1: Are you serious? I think your face is adorable. And you could easily get one of those layer cuts - that would look so cute I think. I was actually going to do that except that I was afraid it would accent my long neck.
Woman2: Oh - that's funny! I would love to have your neck! Anything to take attention away from this two-by-four I have for a shoulder line.
Woman1: Are you kidding? I know girls that would love to have your shoulders. Everything drapes so well on you. I mean, look at my arms - see how short they are? If I had your shoulders I could get clothes to fit me so much easier.
Men's version:
Man2: Haircut?
Man1: Yeah.
For many of us (men), the "52 second" number seems a bit on the conservative side. Perhaps it is skewed by the football season. Fortunately, there are cheerleaders to remind us.
From one of my favorite Life In Hell cartoon clips,
"Fish won't bite when girls are talking"
Women really should not be surprised when men eventually tune out the constant talking as just background noise.
Ladies, save the inane chatter for your girlfriends and just get to the bloody point. You'd be amazed how well we'll react to that simple act of compromise.
Mostly nagging I have found out.
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