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In what may feel like a flashback to the porn wars of the '60s, a new study investigates the link between a country's relative gender equality and the degree of female "empowerment" in the X-rated entertainment it consumes. Researchers at the University of Hawaii focused on three countries in particular: Norway, the United States and Japan, which are respectively ranked 1st, 15th and (yikes) 54th on the United Nations' Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM). To simplify their analysis, their library of smut was limited to explicit photographs of women "from mainstream pornographic magazines and Internet websites, as well as from the portfolios of the most popular porn stars from each nation." Then they set out to evaluate each image on both a disempowerment and an empowerment scale, using respective measures like whether the woman is "bound and dominated" by "leashes, collars, gags, or handcuffs" or "whether she has a natural looking body." Their hypothesis was that societies with greater gender equity will consume pornography that has more representations of "empowered women" and less of "disempowered women." It turned out the former was true, but, contradictory as it may sound, the latter was not. "While Norwegian pornography offers a wider variety of body types -- conforming less to a societal ideal that is disempowering to the average woman -- there are still many images that do not promote a healthy respect for women," the researchers explain. In other words, Norwegian porn showed more signs of female empowerment, but X-rated images in all three countries equally depicted women in demeaning positions and scenarios. This, the researchers surmise, "suggests that empowerment and disempowerment within pornography are potentially different constructs." So, gender equality is accompanied by sexual interest in a broader range of beauty types but not a decrease in porn's infantilization of females, use of dominating fetish gear on women or any of the other characteristics th

SlutWalk is a huge reclamation and restatement about boundaries and women's bodies. Sex workers are broadcasting the message that just because the nature of the work is sex does not mean that their bodies are automatically available for anyone's public debate, or worse. At the same time, all of the women in SlutWalks represent the idea that women can dress provocatively - and men still need to understand where the boundaries are.

Read IAnD's story on Miki Agrawal, a young social entrepreneur from New York, whose innovative design is not only empowering women but working towards a greener environment

monogamy is the right choice for many couples; they are exalting options, not any particular option.

From leather accents and pop colours to quirky miniature purses and so much more, here's all you women need to know, to stay afloat in these fashionable times. Read on to know more…

Restored to its former glory by Somaya & Kalappa Consultants, Seva Sadan Society's Malabari Hall now stands as a proud cultural landmark in Mumbai, front-lining the organisation's women empowerment movement.

Is the sneaker ruling fashionista footwear choices? The sneakers of today are not your mum's keds. No. Far from it. They have been transformed to loafers, comfortable slip-ons and blingy sequined numbers - renewing and rejuvenating upbeat fashion choices of the young urban woman.