Of boys and girls (denying differences no virtue)

National Post (Canada) ^ | Thursday, February 24, 2005 | Anne Marie Owens

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And that is exactly why 50 years ago we had women of great excellence in the sciences.

Yup

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Quite interesting, and confirms observations I've made myself as a Naval Instructor...I taught a highly technical course to young naval Aircrewmen, usually between ages 18-23, with a mix of males and females in a high-stress, physically and mentally demanding environment for three years.

The males overwhelmingly responded best to CHALLENGE, of an ever-increasing variety, and to agressive, "macho" training tactics ("You BETTER get 100% on that test, boy, or I'll make you do pushups until you cry!").

The females, by contrast, responded best to an encouraging, supportive style of instruction ("C'mon...I know you can do better!").

It was a real challenge to be able to switch gears from one style to the other in a single class, especially when PT was being done. You could expect a male to give everything he had when you said something like "FASTER! Run like you GOT a pair!". For the females, you had to say something like, "COME ON! You're doing great, keep it up!"