Questions tagged [sex]
Questions involving the study of sex and reproduction, mating systems, sexuality, sex determination, gender, the evolution of sex, and other topics in the context of sex.
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Are humans unusual, compared to other animals, in not understanding the mechanics of sex instinctively?
To begin with a personal anecdote: there was a period in my childhood, which I can remember clearly, in which I was aware of sexual reproduction as a fact, but the mechanics of it remained a ...
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What is the evidence that women experience a larger cortisol spike than men, when they see domestic clutter?
I'm reading a book "The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload" by Daniel Levitin.
At the beginning of chapter "Organizing our homes" he says that ...
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How does positional memory in fibroblast cells work?
I have a question regarding how positional memory in fibroblasts work, specifically, where the memory comes from/how its made.
For example, the Salamander & other amphibians are able to regenerate ...
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Is “random arousal” in humans still caused by/connected to “background” sex drive?
I’m not sure if the title is the best way to word the concept but I don’t know how else to put it briefly; though honestly this question itself might be a bit hard for me to communicate concisely in ...
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What is the origin of mammals X/Y sex determination system and what/when was the last common ancestor to possess these chromosomes?
I know many animals use an X/Y sex determination system, but not all of these animals use the same X/Y genes. That is to say the X/Y sex determination system has convergently evolved in many species, ...
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For animals with separate hermaphrodite and non-hermaphrodite populations which is more common, female + herm or male + herm?
I think the question already says it all. I know there exist animals that have both herm and female populations and other's with herm and male populations, I'm not personally aware of any animal that ...
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Is it possible to fuse DNA from two sperms and can a baby be born from that? [closed]
If this is possible, then isn't there going to be a chance to have a YY child?
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higher-order evolutionary adaptations
Most adaptations are what I'd call first-order. Cats evolve better eyesight; redwoods evolve to grow taller; male cardinals evolve attractive bright feathers. All of these changes were selected for ...
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Why do women have less synapses / neurons / brain mass than men despite having the same average IQ?
I don't mean to cause offence or suggest than men and women shouldn't be of the same intelligence — that's not something I'm here to dispute. What I want to understand is how this is possible given ...
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When is it better for a gene to cause a biased sex ratio?
Because genes are selfish and want to maximise their transmission from generation to generation, if they can distort a population's sex ratio, isn't it always in their interest to cause a biased sex ...
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Will Fst (inbreeding coefficient) always be a value close or at 0 in asexual populations?
FST is the average inbreeding coefficient of a total population. The equation is:
$F_{ST} = \frac{Var(S)}{Var(T)} $
$Var(S)$ = variance in the frequency of the allele between different subpopulations, ...
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Do hormones make it more likely to perceive sexual forms in otherwise non-sexual objects? [closed]
People can see sexual forms in many things. It seems that this varies with age, but this is not enough to claim it is because of sexual hormones. The question is: is it?
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Is there any evolutionary reason why male traits appear in the heterogametic sex and female traits in the homogametic sex?
If you define male as the heterogametic sex, and female as the homogametic sex, then my question sounds like a tautology. But, what I'm trying to get at is why is it that the traits we associate with &...
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Flatworms sexual reproduction; one must be the mother and the other the father?
I watched this.
I wonder if both of these flatworms ever end up pregnant.
Earthworms are simultaneous hermaphrodites, meaning worms have both male and female reproductive organs, just like flatworms. ...
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What causes the sound of climaxing bees?
I just saw the funniest video of bumblebees(?) having sex. (mirror) As they were getting it on, there seemed to be an almost audible 'moaning' coming from the pair. From what I presume it was a sexual ...
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are there examples of research harmed by the binary vs. non binary genders discussions? [closed]
As a base for my question, here is a link to an article from nature.com: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00502-w
In the article, the following paragraph is relevant:
The researchers ...
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Empirical Measurements of Barr Body Ratio
'Both X-chromosomes in a female have an equal chance of becomes a Barr body in each cell.' Every source I can find on Barr bodies claims this and I can think of no reason for why it may be wrong. What ...
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Why do the two sexes have different reproductive costs and capabilities?
Is there an evolutionary explanation that shows why the reproductive costs are mostly on the female sex?
And therefore, why do males can potentially have more offspring?
Does that happen to create ...
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What exactly is "lateral septum"?
I came across the phrase lateral septum and I can't seem to find the precise definition online. Is it "the areas roughly to the right and the left of the septum pellucidum"? Or is it the ...
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What are "intrinsic hypothalamic fibers"? (From an article on neuronal mechanisms of sexual desire)
I came across the phrase intrinsic hypothalamic fibers which I cannot understand. What is meant by intrinsic - that these fibers (long myelinated axons?) start in the hypothalamus? Or that they start ...
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Germ cells vs. gametes
Naively, I thought that germ cells are diploid (in diploid species like human/mouse at least). Then, germ cells undergo meiosis and become haploid. I thought this was the critical change that defined ...
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Y chromosome changing sex ratios
Fisher's principle explains why sex ratios in most sexually reproducing species is approximately $1:1$. However, given that in humans and many other animals, males and females differ genetically, it ...
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Why are men more susceptible to severe COVID-19?
It seems that globally, men are more susceptible to severe COVID-19 than women:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/26/men-are-much-more-likely-to-die-from-coronavirus-but-why
This is seen in ...
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Is it impossible for some female songbirds to sing?
I have read that in northern hemispheres, most female songbirds can't sing (for example, the Blackbird). Things are different in tropical regions. Birdsong is for males in some species; it is utilized ...
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Large study showing that attraction to only the same sex has to do with your genes, published where?
Can someone please help me out and find and link me the study from a couple of years ago that showed how only same sex attraction, when the male cant become attracted to a woman, it has to do with ...
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If someone with "XO" is one of the identical twins with the other twin as male, then what would the sex chromosome of the other twin be?
A more complete question: If someone with sex chromosome of XO is one of the monozygotic twins with the other twin as phenotypically male, then what would the sex chromosome of the other twin be?
I ...
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What is the developmental and health outcome of an XY individual with an SRY addition on their X chromosome?
I know that "XX male" syndrome occurs through various means, including the addition of an SRY gene in one of the X chromosomes. The developmental and health outcomes of such individuals can be ...
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Evolution of the unique mating system of the scorpion Androctonus australis
Sperm transfer in the scorpion Androctonus australis involves a sclerotized spermatophore, which is formed in the paraxial organs of the male reproductive system. The right paraxial organ produces the ...
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Is sex a spectrum?
At the moment I'm especially interested in the question of whether biological sex is really a spectrum. Unfortunately I could not find any good answers on the Internet. Therefore I hope that some of ...
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How widespread in the Animal Kingdom is Aromatization as the Process that Determines an Animal's Sex?
I shall summarize my lay understanding of my question before going into details. To my lay reading, the sex of a vast diversity of animal kingdom species can be thought of as arising from the extent ...
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Is sexual desire stronger in men than women?
Usually in popular culture it's considered men sexual desire is stronger than women. This seems to be congruent with the availability of sexual related items for men and women, such as magazines, ...
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How does X chromosome monosomy occur
I want to understand how Turner syndrome - monosomy X - occurs at the molecular level. The NIH mentions that there are cases of both complete monosomy and of mosaicism.
I’m particularly interested ...
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Evolution of the haplo-diplontic life cycle
From wikipedia > Biological Life Cycle:
haplontic life cycle - the haploid stage is multicellular and the diploid stage is a single cell, meiosis is "zygotic".
diplontic life cycle - the diploid ...
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Why are (some) male humans sexually attracted to the breasts of female humans? [closed]
Many male humans are sexually attracted to the breasts of female humans. Is there an evolutionary reason for this?
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Why is sex hurtful for some animals but pleasurable for others?
Sex seems to be pretty hurtful for feline for example. On the other hand sex is pleasurable for humans. Why is sex pleasurable for some and not for others? How do these things evolve?
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Can diet, supplementation and/or drugs affect sexual dimorphism?
After puberty, can certain diets, exercise, and/or possible drugs affect masculine/feminine dimorphism in adults? We know dimorphism and/or morphology is a product of genes, but to what extent can ...
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Are humans the only primates being engaged in group sex?
There are quite many examples of humans being involved in group sex. I won't say it is a common thing and won't say whether it is "natural" or "cultural" (but "cultural" only means induced to majority ...
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In men, why do over 80% of sperm have abnormal form? [duplicate]
Here is the percentage of normal forms among fertile mens according to the centile (Source: Cooper et al. 2010):
2.5: 3%
5 (below this is Teratozoospermia): 4%
10: 5.5%
25: 9%
50 (median): 15%
75: ...
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Why do hot water baths affect only males' fertility? Why not females'?
Here is the link where urologists are warning men not to take hot water baths.
Why does it affect only males' fertility? Why not females also?
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Are there lifeforms that have more than 2 sexes?
Are there any lifeforms on earth that have more than male and female biological sexes?
If so, are all three mates required for reproduction or is there something else going on?
If not, why not? ...
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Is it Theoretically Possible to Create a Male clone from the donor Cell of a Female?
I understand that Dolly the Sheep was created without the presence of a sperm cell. Instead, nucleus DNA from somatic cells of adult sheep were used. Since Dolly was female, i am assuming that the ...
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Do reproductive organs function before puberty?
Testis means one of the two male reproductive glands that produce spermatozoa and secrete androgens.
Ovary means one of usually two organs that produce oocytes and secrete oestrogen and progesterone.
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Do ovaries produce estrogen before menarche?
It is traditionally taught that estrogen is produced by the granulosa cells of the follicle. But before menarche, where does the estrogen come from? Is it from the thin layer of granulosa cells lining ...
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Why are worker ants not clones of the queen?
Currently worker ants of most species share only three quarters of their genetic code. It seems like worker ant clones would be better, as it would remove all genetic conflict of interest between them....
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Which scallops change their sex from male to female?
Tonight it occurred to me to look up what scallops are like when they are alive (beyond their culinary role) and it blew my mind. This post regards one detail about which I was unable to find specific ...
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Sex determination in cephalopod?
I see some source say octopus do not have sex chromosome. So what's the sex determination mechanism for cephalopods?
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How many genders are there? [closed]
These days it is often contested how many genders is there. So my question is how many genders is there and is it unnatural for evolution to generate multiple genders.
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Can you tell if a corpse was male or female by only examining its skull?
There are articles that says women have more rounded corner faces than men, than women noses are usually shorter, etc.
But are those (and other features) tendencies or deterministic features that ...
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Does orgasm cause a dopamine crash?
There's some theory around that orgasm will cause a dopamine surge and drop, and that this can lead to a period of low mood or depression. A come down.
Is this true, does orgasm have a negative ...
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Are male and female brains physically different from birth?
Male and female brains are wired differently according to this article:
Maps of neural circuitry showed that on average women's brains were highly connected across the left and right hemispheres, ...
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