Re: [asa] Homosexuality & brain scan study

The data is what the data is. What concerns me are the conclusions people
want to draw from the data, like the quote in the story from a lecturer in
cognitive biology: "'As far as I'm concerned there is no argument any more
- if you are gay, you are born gay,' he said."

This seems like one of those classic questions about the boundaries and
authority of scientific disciplines. The notion of "gay" is of course a
social construction -- the ways in which a "gay" person might think about
his or her place in society, the ways in which a "gay" person might develop
his or her self-image, the extent to which a "gay" person might act or not
act on his or her inclinations, the venues and opportunities for expressing
a "gay" identity, the very cooption of the word "gay" to denote sexual
orientation -- all of these important things and more are culturally bound.

It's absurd, then, to say anyone is "born gay." The more accurate statement
might be that people seem to be born with differences in brain structure
that affect feelings of sexual desire towards members of the same or the
opposite sex, which feelings, in contemporary Western culture, implicate the
notion of being "gay" or "straight." On the theological / ethical front,
this neither leaves us free to accept "gay" identity as biologically
determined nor to reject "gay" identity as a simple choice.

On Tue, Jun 17, 2008 at 2:11 PM, Stephen Matheson <smatheso@calvin.edu>
wrote:

> Bernie--
>
> Perhaps you could clarify how your contribution is relevant to the data
> reported by the investigators. Are you suggesting that amygalar synapse
> formation and/or hemispheric volume in humans is significantly influenced by
> "thought control"? As a neuroscientist, I am keenly interested in why you
> have dismissed the research as "nonsense."
>
> Steve Matheson
>
> >>> "Dehler, Bernie" <bernie.dehler@intel.com> 06/17/08 11:02 AM >>>
> I think the story is nonsense.
>
>
>
> Take a similar question. Do guys prefer girls who are fat or thin? In
> the USA, we'd say of course the thin are the ones in demand (look at the
> women is a Miss America pageant). But in some places, like Saudia
> Arabia, the very fat ones are the ones in demand. The influence of
> culture is tremendous. I doubt the guys of Saudia Arabia have different
> brains than those of men in the USA. I think a guy can sexualize
> another guy or gal if he lets his mind go there- it is a matter of
> thought control.
>
>
>
> Fat women story:
> http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Apr16/0,4670,MauritaniaLovingFat,00.htm
> l
>
> Excerpt:
> In Mauritania, to make a girl big and plump, 'gavage' _ a borrowed
> French word from the practice of fattening of geese for foie gras _
> starts early. Obesity has long been the ideal of beauty, signaling a
> family's wealth in a land repeatedly wracked by drought.
>
> Mint was 4 when her family began to force her to drink 14 gallons of
> camel's milk a day. When she vomited, she was beaten. If she refused to
> drink, her fingers were bent back until they touched her hand. Her
> stomach hurt so much she prayed all the animals in the world would die
> so that there would be no more milk.
>
> By the time Mint was 10, she could no longer run. Unconcerned, her proud
> mother delighted in measuring the loops of fat hanging under her
> daughter's arms.
>
> "My mother thinks she made me beautiful. But she made me sick," says
> Mint, who suffers from weight-related illnesses including diabetes and
> heart disease. She asked that her full last name not be disclosed
> because she feels embarrassed.
>
>
>
>
>
> ...Bernie
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On
> Behalf Of drsyme@cablespeed.com
> Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2008 7:06 AM
> To: asa@calvin.edu; Christine Smith
> Subject: Re: [asa] Homosexuality & brain scan study
>
>
>
> Interesting, but nothing new really. I have long ago come to the
> conclusion that sexual preference is stucturally determined. I do not
> think it is a learned behavior in the vast majority of cases. I dont
> know whether or not it is genetic, or due to maternal influences during
> gestation.
>
> The question of whether or not a gay lifestyle is sinful or not is a
> religious question however and not a scientific one.
>
>
>
> On Tue Jun 17 9:25 , Christine Smith sent:
>
> Hi all,
>
> Any thoughts on this story?
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7456588.stm
>
> In Christ,
> Christine (ASA member)
>
> "For we walk by faith, not by sight" ~II Corinthians 5:7
>
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-- 
David W. Opderbeck
Associate Professor of Law
Seton Hall University Law School
Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology
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