No offense to some, the brain of women would be as capable of carrying them to the highest spheres as that of men.
- Today, the averages used are 1,450 grams for men’s brains and 1,300 grams for women’s brains.
- The male brain contains more cerebrospinal fluid and white matter than the female brain.
- Women, on the other hand, have a greater quantity of gray matter, ie more neuronal tissue and receiving elements (dendrites).
According to a new study of the Australian National University (ANU), the theory which, since a certain Charles Darwin, maintains that the men are more brilliant than the women for biological reasons, would not be founded.
10,000 studies screened
“The idea that biology induces greater behavioral diversity in male animals is often put forward to explain why more males than females are considered geniuses or become CEOs,” recalls in the introduction the main author of the study, Lauren Harrison.
To test this argument, his team synthesized the results of more than 10,000 biological studies, involving 220 very varied animal species, ranging from insects to dolphins. The goal was to compare the behaviors of males and females, to find out if one sex was more versatile than the other. The audacity, aggressiveness, exploration, sociability and activity capacities of thousands of animals were thus measured. And in the end, nothing has demonstrated a greater variability in the personality traits of males or females in any of the species studied.
“A similar number of underperforming men and women”
“According to our results, if we assume that humans are like other animals, there is as much chance of having a similar number of successful women as there are successful men in this world,” infers Lauren Harrison. In the same perspective, “there is also a similar number of underperforming men and women,” she continues.
“Our research on over 200 animal species shows that the behavioral variation of males and females is very similar. Therefore, there is no reason to invoke this biology-based argument as to why more males that women are Nobel laureates”, comments biologist Michael Jennions, co-author of the study.
“Instead of using biology to explain why there are more male CEOs, we should ask what role culture and education play in this state of affairs,” concludes Ms. Harrison.
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