[extropy-chat] DNA: Mens brains wired to ignore women....

[Mike Lorrey]

http://u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?id=63452&pt=n

FRIDAY 05/08/2005 12:54:46      
Male brains 'not wired' to listen to women

Men who are accused of never listening by women now have an excuse.    
  
Scientists have found that women`s voices are more difficult for men to
listen to than men`s.

Researchers at the University of Sheffield tracked activity in the
brains of 12 men while playing recordings of different voices.

There were startling differences in the way the brain responded to male
and female sounds.

Men deciphered female voices using the auditory part of the brain that
processes music.

Male voices engaged a simpler mechanism at the back of the brain.

Researcher Dr Michael Hunter said today: "The female voice is actually
more complex than the male voice, due to differences in the size and
shape of the vocal cords and larynx between men and women, and also due
to women having greater natural `melody` in their voices. This causes a
more complex range of sound frequencies than in a male voice.

"When a man hears a female voice the auditory section of his brain is
activated, which analyses the different sounds in order to `read` the
voice and determine the auditory face.

"When men hear a male voice the part of the brain that processes the
information is towards the back of the brain and is colloquially known
as the `mind`s eye`. This is the part of the brain where people compare
their experiences to themselves, so the man is comparing his own voice
to the new voice to determine gender."

The findings, published in the journal NeuroImage, may help explain why
people suffering hallucinations usually hear male voices, say the
scientists.

It could be that the brain finds it much harder to conjure up a false
female voice accurately than a false male voice.
 


Mike Lorrey
Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
Founder, Constitution Park Foundation:
http://constitutionpark.blogspot.com
Personal/political blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com


		
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