Scientists decoding the human genome announced that just 78 genes separate men from women. The BBC then published a list of guesses at what those genes do.
Here are a few of my favorites:
Women drive on the stretch of road they can see. Men move through the landscape by car.
Men do not even bother to look for something, then ask where it is and hope that it was the woman who put it away.
Men use I or me when they should use we or us. Women use we or us when they should use I or me.
These are my favorites because they make me laugh by reminding me of some, not all, of the real men and women I know.
Speaking of real men and women, Dave Winer today links to a lovely piece he wrote a few years ago about boys, adventure, and a dangerous tumble down the side of a mountain. On the way down, exhilarated, safe, he points out his cuts and blood to a little boy:
Look, I fell down the mountain! I smile happily. I’m OK! Everyone laughs.
Boys dig this (I’m a boy too). In our best moments, this is what being a man is about — taking risks, falling down, getting up and laughing at our good fortune.
I know Dave means by this what he says he means–that men (like women) find inspiration and comfort in living up to their ideals.
There are a lot of things that aren’t “fair” when you compare the lot of men and women. Women live longer. Men earn more. Women make jokes about men and don’t like it when men make jokes about them. (Of course the opposite is also true–it just depends on which social group you hang out with.)
I did
a Google search on “it’s not fair” and came up with almost 90,000 results. Here, in the order I found them, are the top six:
- Health Care is under attack in Ontario and transsexuals have been unfairly targetted.
- During the Iraq war, ClearChannel radio news had a blatantly pro-war slant.
- The playing field for DB2 backup and recovery is not level.
- Global inequalities condemn many people to live in hopeless poverty.
- Pollution and nationalism create problems for many species.
- Some national park roads are impassible when it rains.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Martin // Jun 20, 2003 at 11:39 pm
Men can also write their name in the snow – women can’t, unless your name is ‘Whoosh’ or something!
Check me out and add me at Savland.
Cheers
2 jr // Jun 21, 2003 at 6:30 am
Reading through the news reports I see that men have an extra brain gene. Man to wife: “Uh dear, how do you turn this thing on?”