The Brain Discovering how each gender thinks, acts and feels Understanding the original super computer--the brain--is proving a difficult task even for the species within which it operates.

Understanding the original super computer--the brain--is proving a difficult task even for the species within which it operates.

In a part of the temporal lobe associated with language skills, women's brains contain up to 11% more brain cells than men's brains. This does not necessarily mean that women are smarter than men, but it does show they are different. Mark Nichols; Boys, Girls and Brain Power-the research of Sandra Witelson, McMaster University; Maclean's, 1/22/96. Males are faster at solving problems involving some types of spatial perceptions than are women. GSAHB p 19-20 Male brain neurons are about a third larger than female neurons; male and female neurons take up significantly different amounts of dopamine--a brain chemical that acts as a mood enhancer, relieves pain and regulates motion. GSAHB p 25 Portions of the left brain hemisphere are more prominent in males. Some investigators correlate this with a reported greater hemispheric specialization at earlier ages in males and the lower incidence in females of developmental disorders associated with language deficits--known to be associated with the left hemisphere. GSAHB p 23 Estrogen replacement therapy is associated with a 40% lower incidence of Alzheimer's disease. This disorder is twice as prevalent in women as in men, a difference in frequency not found in other forms of dementia. GSAHB p 22 Women are two to three time more likely to experience depression than are men. The gender difference emerges around the age of 15. Depression may not be as gender-linked as commonly thought, however. Over the past decades the prevalence of depression has become more equal among the sexes. This may be because depression is caused by more than gender-specific physical attributes: It involves an interaction between genetic, hormonal and environmental factors. GSAHB p 23-24