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1、DigestOfThe.Economist.2006(8-9)ThemismeasureofwomanMenandwomenthinkdifferently.ButnotthatdifferentlyINTHE1970stherewasafadforgivingdollstobabyboysandfire-enginestobabygirls.Theideawasthatdifferencesinbehaviourbetweenthesexesweresolelytheresultofupbringing:
2、cultureturnedwomenintoironers,knittersandchatterboxes,andmenintohammerers,drillersandsilenttypes.Switchingtoyswouldputanendtosexualsorting.Today,itisclearwhyitdidnot.Whenboysandgirlsareborn,theyarealreadydifferent,andtheyfavourdifferenttoysfromthebeginning
3、.Thatboysandgirls—andmenandwomen—areprogrammedbyevolutiontobehavedifferentlyfromoneanotherisnowwidelyaccepted.Surely,noonetodaywouldthinkofdoingwhatJohnMoney,ofJohnsHopkinsUniversity,didin1967:amputatingthegenitaliaofaboywhohadsufferedabotchedcircumcision,
4、andadvisingtheparentstobringhimupasagirl.Theexperimentdidn'twork,andtheconsequencesweretragic.Butwhichofthedifferencesbetweenthesexesare“biological”,inthesensethattheyhavebeenhonedbyevolution,andwhichare“cultural”or“environmental”andmightmoreeasilybealtere
5、dbychangedcircumstances,isstillfiercelydebated.ThesensitivityofthequestionwasshownlastyearbyafuroreatHarvardUniversity.LarrySummers,thenHarvard'spresident,causedastormwhenhesuggestedthatinnateabilitycouldbeanimportantreasonwhythereweresofewwomeninthetoppos
6、itionsinmathematics,engineeringandthephysicalsciences.Evenasapropositionfordiscussion,thisisunacceptabletosome.Butbiologicalexplanationsofhumanbehaviouraremakingacomebackasthegenerationofacademicsthatfearedthemasacovertwayofjustifyingeugenics,orofthwarting
7、Marxistutopianism,isretiring.Thesuccessofneo-Darwinismhasprovidedanintellectualunderpinningfordiscussionaboutwhysomedifferencesbetweenthesexesmightbeinnate.Andnewscanningtechniqueshaveenabledresearcherstoexaminethebrain'sinteriorwhileitisworking,showingtha
8、tmaleandfemalebrainsdo,atonelevel,operatedifferently.Theresults,however,donotalwayssupportpastclichésaboutwhatthedifferencesinquestionactuallyare.Differencesinbehaviourbetweenthesexesmust,insomeway,bereflecti
