Sex on the Brain: The Biological Differences Between Men and Women

Deborah Blum

Penguin, Jul 1, 1998 - Social Science - 352 pages

Go beyond the headlines and the hype to get the newest findings in the burgeoning field of gender studies. Drawing on disciplines that include evolutionary science, anthropology, animal behavior, neuroscience, psychology, and endocrinology, Deborah Blum explores matters ranging from the link between immunology and sex to male/female gossip styles. The results are intriguing, startling, and often very amusing. For instance, did you know that. . .

• Male testosterone levels drop in happy marriages; scientists speculate that women may use monogamy to control male behavior
• Young female children who are in day-care are apt to be more secure than those kept at home; young male children less so
• Anthropologists classify Western societies as "mildly polygamous"

The Los Angeles Times has called Sex on the Brain "superbly crafted science writing, graced by unusual compassion, wit, and intelligence, that forms an important addition to the literature of gender studies."

Contents

• INTRODUCTION: xiii
• SPLITTING THE LARK The Origins of Sex: 1
• PINPOINTING THE DIFFERENCE Comparing Male and Female Brains: 36
• HEART TO HEART Sex Differences in Emotion: 64
• PERFECT PARTNERS The Monogamy Puzzle: 94
• THE SECOND DATE Inquiries into Sexual Orientation: 127
• THE BIG T Defining Testosterone: 158
• THE CYCLE GAME Biology and Estrogens: 189
• COUNTERSTIKES Love Lust and Rape: 220
• ONCE DIVIDED Power and Gender Biology: 253

About the author

Pulitzer Prize winner Deborah Blum is a professor of science journalism at the University of Wisconsin. She worked as a newspaper science writer for twenty years, winning the Pulitzer in 1992 for her writing about primate research, which she turned into a book, The Monkey Wars (Oxford, 1994). Her other books include Sex on the Brain (Viking, 1997) and Love at Goon Park (Perseus, 2002). She has written about scientific research for The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, Discover, Health, Psychology Today, and Mother Jones. She is a past president of the National Association of Science Writers and now serves on an advisory board to the World Federation of Science Journalists and the National Academy of Sciences.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Sex on the Brain: The Biological Differences Between Men and Women; A New York Times Notable book
• Author: Deborah Blum
• Edition: reprint
• Publisher: Penguin, 1998
• ISBN: 0140263489, 9780140263480
• Length: 352 pages
• Subjects: Psychology / Human Sexuality; Science / Life Sciences / Biology; Social Science / Gender Studies