Women's brains have more cells than men

news.telegraph.co.uk ^ | 11/13/01 | Roger Highfield

[Diddle E. Squat]

Women's brains have more cells than men

By Roger Highfield, Science Editor (Filed: 13/11/2001)

WOMEN'S grey matter is packed more densely with brain cells compared with that of men in a region that plays an important role in higher mental processes, according to a team of American researchers.

Differences in the density of cells in the thin rind on the surface of the brain responsible for judgment, personality, planning and working memory have been found by Prof Sandra Witelson, of McMaster University, Ontario.

Women have up to 15 per cent more cell density in this region, the frontal lobe, suggesting that this part of their brains has greater connectivity with other brain regions, according to the study of 20 men and women presented to the Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego.

However, unlike men, women shed cells more rapidly from this area with the passing of years, so that in old age women have a similar density to men.

Prof Witelson's team is now checking for effects on performance. "What this means in terms of cognition we don't know yet," she says.

[Diddle E. Squat]

Psychosomatic versus efficiency? Genetic advantage, or simply too much clutter in the attic?

[ozidar]

Quantity vs. quality.

[Wm Bach]

Just like they have bigger butts and thighs...Fat cells.

[DinkyDau]

They have more clothes, too.

[billybudd]

Dolphins have much larger brains than humans. Don't you get it people, intelligence is inversely proportional to brain size! That's why the dinosaurs were so smart!

[duckman]

Women make a few mistakes, men make only two. Everything they say and everything they do. /sarcasm/

[wideawake]

The average woman's brain weighs one ounce less than a man's due to their smaller physical stature.

The amount of neurons is similar in both - only those neurons have to fit into a smaller space in women.

[mlo]

Women's brains have more cells than men

They just don't use them as efficiently. :-)

[toupsie]

Did they check out to see if the sound of a woman's voice while nagging destroyed the cells in a man's brain? I know when my fiancé starts nagging, all the cells that control my hearing seem to shut down.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

They use them to remember where they keep all those shoes.

[CubicleGuy]

Women have up to 15 per cent more cell density in this region, the frontal lobe, suggesting that this part of their brains has greater connectivity with other brain regions,...

Well, let's do the math.

If you have 5 brain cells, and every brain cell needs to be able to talk to every other brain cell, this means there needs to be 20 (5 * 4) pathways set up between those cells.

If you have 8 brain cells, this means 56 pathways.

The more brain cells, the bigger the connectivity requirement.

Sounds like the end result is a bigger traffic jam to me.

(No doubt, I've oversimplified things here, but it's not my fault: I have less brain cells to work with.)

[Charles Henrickson]

Women's brains have more cells devoted to shopping and talking on the telephone.

Why do you think they call 'em cell phones, anyway?

[SAMWolf]

WOMEN'S grey matter is packed more densely with brain cells compared with that of men

I've always suspected that women were more dense than men....

[Happygal]

LMAO!!!!!!!! I was just going to post that women have more shoes! *L* Well I know I do....Imelda Marcos is my understudy! *L*

[riley1992]

If she is already nagging you and you aren't even married yet, you are in big trouble, Senor.

[Gasshog]

more "women superior to men" propaganda BS

[DouglasKC]

Well this is a no-brainer. Everyone knows that men are heavier drinkers, thus we kill off more brain cells.

Well I can dream can't I?

[Charles Henrickson]

[Woodkirk]

Does this mean that they tend to be more dense and hard headed?

[Woodkirk]

Does this mean that they tend to be more dense and hard headed?