Note that <i>only</i> the headline says "may explain why girls mature faster". Note the use of "may". Yet within days, this research becomes:<p><pre><code> "Girls really do mature quicker than boys, scientists find" - The Telegraph
"Why Girls’ Brains Mature Faster Than Boys' Brains" - Time
"Science proves girls do mature faster than boys" - San Francisco Chronicle
</code></pre>
There was a similar charade a few weeks back when a PNAS paper about differences in the connections between male and female subjects (concluding that males connected more strongly front to back, females more strongly laterally) turned into hundreds of front-page stories about women being better at multitasking and men better at map reading, before being roundly denounced as quite shoddy research. By then of course, the meme has stuck, because we love having our prejudices confirmed.<p>The main difference between male and female brains is that male brains tend to be bigger:<p><a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/neuroskeptic/2013/09/25/are-mens-brains-just-bigger/" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/neuroskeptic/2013/09/25/ar...</a>
Why are we so obsessed with finding genetic reasons to explain thinking differences in gender(or race) when the obvious elephant-in-the-room are social/cultural pressures that must have a huge impact?<p>I'd feel better about these studies if they could somehow account for these outside influences.<p>How about the whole idea of "boys will be boys" versus "A lady must be clean & proper". Don't we pretty much enforce responsibility & "proper adult lady" behavior in girls super early? Generally frowned upon when girls use bad language, spit in public, not sit up straight in chairs, etc. We enforce girls to act like proper, well-behaved princesses from day one. We also know that it's much easier for a woman to ruin her lady-like image[0] than for a guy to ruin his. In fact, looking at TVshows like JerseyShore and the whole gangsta-hiphop image... I can't think of any way for a man to ruin his social image short of being accused of child molestation. For boys, it's just "Go wild!" and that attitude seems to carry all the way to college for the most part, hence the whole frat-house start-up culture. The only responsibility that's really drilled into boys growing up is to just avoid doing things that'll land 'em in jail. Any other anti-social behavior(like loud burping in public & having many, many nights with random ladies) is just fine. In fact, being a responsible & well-behaved male adult makes you a wimp it seems! <a href="http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view/54507/danny-tanner-wtf-o.gif" rel="nofollow">http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view/54507/danny-tanner-wtf-o.gif</a><p>0. <a href="http://www.alternet.org/story/86736/he's_a_stud,_she's_a_slut%3A_the_sexual_double_standard" rel="nofollow">http://www.alternet.org/story/86736/he's_a_stud,_she's_a_slu...</a><p>Girls typical toys:<p><a href="http://1-ps.googleusercontent.com/x/www.dailydawdle.com/images.dailydawdle.com/horribly-depressing-wtf-sexist-girls-toys-fail2.jpg.pagespeed.ce.dHneSXUbXG.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://1-ps.googleusercontent.com/x/www.dailydawdle.com/imag...</a><p><a href="http://genderfatigue.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/girls_toy_ironing_board_set.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://genderfatigue.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/girls_toy_i...</a><p><a href="http://www.stylishtrendy.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/top-ten-girls-toys-for-2012_2.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://www.stylishtrendy.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/top-...</a><p><a href="http://www.novanatural.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/4/8/4805-sweet-baby-doll.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://www.novanatural.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/ima...</a><p>Boys typical toys:<p><a href="http://cf067b.medialib.glogster.com/media/5e/5e59e3fc4e4be00b7415e9f94a7863acba5d7a632781c7583c07a635c3d612a4/toys-for-boys.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://cf067b.medialib.glogster.com/media/5e/5e59e3fc4e4be00...</a><p><a href="http://themamareport.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/transformers-action-figures.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://themamareport.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/transfor...</a><p><a href="http://www.mommyq.com/wp-content/uploads/Track.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://www.mommyq.com/wp-content/uploads/Track.jpg</a> (Also, LOL @ the photoshopped-in black boy for diversity.)
Like I said: 10,000 hours for boys, 8,000 hours for girls. But the environment has been colored, offset by slavery and sexual politics.<p>It is inevitable that agents like 'pg' (Paul Graham) must say and show, despite personal capacity toward self-interest.