-
If Wishes Were Horses: Thomas Tracy Beatie Lagondino Revisited
Springfield, VA, USA. A previous column, The Woman Who Became A Man Who Became A Woman (http://ts-si.org/content/view/3122/995/#pc_836), discussed Thomas Beatie who was born female, underwent full breast removal (top surgery), and now lives as a male — except that he was pregnant [N1]. I concluded that of all the things Thomas Beatie might be, a man was not one of them [N2].
Transgendered, Yes; Male, obviously no.
A few months after the column was published, TS-Si received a comment from a person who identifies as a transman (female to male HBS man) even though his choice of an email identity, trannyboy, would suggest he is only transgendered. For the purposes of discussion, a brief excerpt from his comment follows:
I apologize if this offends you but you should be basing your opinions on the truth in this and all matters. I am a FTM transsexual, that is my label …
First this is not the first case of FTM pregnancy, though I agree it is unusual. I personally know of 4 cases including Thomas's. …
I am also aware of many FTMs who would be very insulted to hear that because they choose to keep their organs for personal reasons they wouldn't be considered FTM. I choose to get rid of mine first because that was the surgery I could get but not everyone is me. There will always be men who don't choose surgery because they feel the risks are too high …
I know nothing of the man's process of transitioning but I do know that he has stated his identity and you and I must respect it if we wish others to respect us … Firstly that he has not yet had surgery doesn't mean anything to his identity....
-
Does Biology Influence Political Activities And Electoral Participation?
San Diego, CA, USA. There have been intermittent claims for the genetic basis of specific behaviors, such as anger and heterosexuality. These efforts have been overtaken by events, most prominently by an advanced understanding of the difference between the human genome (all DNA) and its subset, the specific genes (packets of coded information extracted from DNA).
Behavior is now known to have a physiological basis with certain adaptive flexibilities that derive from non-genetic sources. As a result, the identification of specific genes must be treated as observational, pending a more detailed analysis of the genomic context.
[C1] Genetic Variation in Political Participation. James H. Fowler, Laura A. Baker, Christopher T. Dawes. American Political Science Review. 102(2) 233-248. doi: 10.1017 / S0003055408080209. [ Download PDF (http://ts-si.org/files/APSRMay08Fowler_etal.pdf) ]
[C2] Two Genes Predict Voter Turnout. James H. Fowler and Christopher T. Dawes. Journal of Politics 70(3) 579–594. doi: 10.1017 / S0022381608080638. ISSN 0022-3816. [ Download PDF (http://ts-si.org/files/06-08GenesAndVoting.pdf) ]
For the first time, research has linked specific genes to political behavior. The new findings suggest that a decision to vote is partly influenced by genes that influence participation in elections and in a wide range of political activities. Investigators identified a link between two specific genes and political participation.
The baseline research was conducted by James H. Fowler and Christopher T. Dawes (University of California, San Diego (http://www.ucsd.edu/portal/site/ucsd)) and Laura A. Baker University of Southern California - USC (http://www.usc.edu/)). Their findings appear in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (http://www.nber.org/~kling/surveys/AddHealth.html) (1994-2002). This data has been utilized in a wide variety of genetic studies, but this is the first time it was used to show that participatory political behavior is heritable.
For example, among identical twins, the researchers conclude that 72 per cent of...
-
Locating The Make Everything Better Button
-
How Our Mental Imagery Influences Visual Perception
Nashville, TN, USA. When you and another person see one another, how each of you unleash your imagination may actually influence how you see the world.
Research has found that mental imagery — what we see with the mind's eye — directly impacts our visual perception.
It is well known that a powerful perceptual experience can change the way a person sees things later. Just think of what can happen if you discover an unwanted pest in your kitchen, such as a mouse. Suddenly you see mice in every dust ball and dark corner — or think you do.
The Functional Impact of Mental Imagery on Conscious Perception. Joel Pearson, Colin W.C. Clifford and Frank Tong. Current Biology, 2008; doi: 10.1016 / j.cub.2008.05.048.
Is it possible that imagining something, just once, might also change how you perceive things? The study authors say that These findings are important because they suggest a potential mechanism by which top-down expectations or recollections of previous experiences might shape perception itself.
We found that imagery leads to a short-term memory trace that can bias future perception, says Joel Pearson, research associate in the Vanderbilt University (http://www.vanderbilt.edu/) Department of Psychology, and lead author of the study. This is the first research to definitively show that imagining something changes vision both while you are imagining it and later on.
You might think you need to imagine something 10 times or 100 times before it has an impact, says Frank Tong, associate professor of psychology and co-author of the study.
Our results show that even a single instance of imagery can tilt how you see the world one way or another, dramatically, if the conditions are right.
To...
-
Duh: Men Who Have Frequent Intercourse Have Less Erectile Dysfunction
Tampere, Finland. Delivering what may prove to be a decided mixed blessing to post-op women (and others) everywhere, researchers have shown that having intercourse more often may help prevent the development of erectile dysfunction (ED). The findings of a new baseline study were published in Download IIEF-5 PDF (http://ts-si.org/files/IIEF-5ScoringSystem.pdf) ]
Writing in the article, Juha Koskimäki, MD, PhD, Tampere University Hospital (http://www.uta.fi/tiedekunnat/laak/english/index_eng.html), Department of Urology (Tampere, Finland), states:
Regular intercourse has an important role in preserving erectile function among elderly men, whereas morning erection does not exert a similar effect. Continued sexual activity decreases the incidence of erectile dysfunction in direct proportion to coital frequency.
The study clearly indicates that regular intercourse protects men from the development of erectile dysfunction, which may, in turn, impact general health and quality of life.
The investigators advise clinicians to support the sexual activity of their patients.
Regular Intercourse Protects Against Erectile Dysfunction: Tampere Aging Male Urologic Study. Juha Koskimäki, Rahman Shiri, Teuvo Tammela, Jukka Häkkinen, Matti Hakama, and Anssi Auvinen. The American Journal of Medicine, 121(7) 592-596. ISSN: 0002-9343
Abstract
Background. Erectile dysfunction is common among men aged more than 60 years. Its cause involves both physiologic and psychosocial factors.
Methods. To evaluate the effects of coital frequency on subsequent risk of erectile dysfunction, data were analyzed from a population-based 5-year follow-up study that was conducted in Pirkanmaa, Finland, using postal questionnaires. Assessment was based on the 5-item version of the validated International Index of Erectile Function. Men with erectile dysfunction at entry were excluded from the analysis. The study sample consisted of 989 men aged 55 to 75 years (mean 59.2 years). The most common comorbidities were hypertension (32%), heart disease (12%), depression (7%), diabetes (4%,) and cerebrovascular disorder (4%).
Results. The overall incidence of moderate or complete erectile dysfunction was 32 cases...
|
Pictures of the Day 
