Orgasmic Science

Orgasm is a physiological response caused by the autonomic nervous system over which we have no conscious control. It is essentially the contraction of pelvic and abdominal muscles initiated by a spinal reflex caused by sexual stimulation. But what does that even mean? We understand the mechanism but why does it happen? Unless you believe in God and consider orgasm some kind of "gift" to us, then we have a lot to discuss, kids. 

So lets go back to the beginning, when do orgasms begin?Believe it or not, male fetuses have been observed to masturbate in the womb shortly after the development of both spinal nerves and fingers. This poses the idea that the experience is instinctive and not learned. 

For men, evolutionarily speaking, orgasms are beneficial to the species. They encourage reproduction through pleasure and are associated with the ejaculation of sperm. Strangely enough, women are also able to experience orgasms despite little evolutionary reason for this. I'm sorry, ladies, but your pleasure does not increase fecundity. So why do women have orgasms then? 

For quite some time, a popular theory circulated suggesting that orgasmic contractions of the uterus are designed to suck up sperm from the vagina, but this has since been proven fictitious. 

No one, as of yet, has a decisive answer to my question, but a likely possibility is that female orgasm is an evolutionary accident caused by the shared developmental pathways in the uterus between males and females, similar to that of nipples in men. Women need nipples to supply milk to their young, but men have them, too. They may not give milk, but like female nipples they can be sexually stimulated. 

Nipples aren't the only thing that can cause sexual stimulation, or even orgasm. Paraplegics often develop a sexually sensitive area above the site of their injury. One heavily-researched woman in the US even orgasmed when cleaning her teeth. 

So what happens to our brains during orgasm? A brain scanning study conducted recently by the University of Groningen demonstrated that areas of women's brains literally switch off during orgasm, including those involved in emotion and caution (remember oxytocin?). The effect existed in men, but to a lesser degree, perhaps because male orgasms are shorter (though more regular). 

It is a common misconception (though not amongst lesbians!) that the female orgasm is designed to happen during heterosexual sex. Data actually shows that while many women struggle to climax during heterosexual penetrative sex, they can usually orgasm via direct clitoral stimulation. In the case of lesbians, both penetration and clitoral stimulation, on average, cause greater sexual arousal than in heterosexual females. Take that!

The National Health Service in the UK estimates that people who have more than two orgasms a week and twice as likely to live to their 60's and that regular sex improves cardiovascular health in teenagers. It has even been suggested that orgasms can be a cure for hiccups. I have an exam on Monday... So till next time, kids, and remember that orgasms are good for many things.

This is Z, signing out.

The Invention of Lying

Emily Dickinson once made the astute observation that the truth is such a rare thing it is a guilty pleasure to tell it. Indeed it seems that the western world, one of institutional bureaucracy, lying has become so common place that it binds us together, supporting our precarious relationships and fragile societal order.


This past week (as many of you are aware), I have been keeping a record of every lie I tell. Whether it be a simple exaggeration, or a small omission of the truth, contextual lies and false flattery alike have all been recorded.


I am happy to admit, that I expected to record the occasional lie,  everyone lies. However, when forced to examine each social interaction and sift through my conversations, I was alarmed at just how many words passed my lips which could be considered a lie (from a social psychological perspective). Perhaps more worryingly, was the lack of effect that recording these lies had on me. Lying it seems, has become an almost autonomic response (a reflex), so much so that we fail to acknowledge that it is taking place.


So, now that you all questioning your trust in me, lets look at the casualties.


9 Bluffs
8 Contextual lies
6 Fabrications
4 False flatteries
5 misleading lies/ommission of the truth
3 exaggerations (hyperbole not included)
3 Emergency lies


The only lies to strangers involved false flattery or omission of the truth, and the most common lies to friends were contextual lies.


Fabrications are something which I found particularly interesting to examine, because it is possible for a scenario to exist, whereby you offer something you believe to be the truth, but have no proof of, and it is still considered a lie. Thus, I was stringent in my assessment, and deemed anything for which I had no proof but stated as truth as a fabrication. Contextual lies were similar in that many involved simply filling in gaps in my memory, a seemingly innocent act. Or else using an event or idea out of context in order to make an argument or a point, though this is perhaps a more self-serving undertaking.


This so called "Book of Lies" has really gotten under my skin, leading to alternating guilt and bemusement, and the ultimate conclusion that the fabric of society is one held together by a web of lies.


I want you to close your eyes for a moment (when you finish reading obviously) and picture for a moment a world without lies. No, more than that, picture a world of radical honesty. For those you that have seen the 2005 "Invention of Lying" this wont be a difficult task, for those of you who haven't, I recommend you do.
It's a world where everyone lacks not only the ability to tell an outright lie, but also the ability to "step around" the truth, hence everything they are thinking, they express to others.


She'll tell you your voice is somewhat shrill and you talk too much when you're nervous, and in light of this, she won't kiss you goodnight because she never plans to see you again, even though you tell her she is quite possibly the most beautiful girl you have ever met.


He'll pass you in the street and tell you that because everyone has enlightened him to the fact he's a failure, he is going to kill himself, only you won't be able to correct them, or tell him you know that everything will be okay, because you don't so you can't.


You'll take your feverish child to the hospital and the doctors will tell you that most children with fevers over 40 degrees Celsius die and that there is absolutely nothing that they can do, except appreciate how lucky they themselves are that their own kids are safe at home.


Yes, sometimes, lies are self-serving and Machiavellian, they hurt and they maim. I don't deny that. But I guess, in spite of this the point I am trying to make is that whether or not lying is morally wrong, or the truth is inevitable, sometimes lies are necessary. Because sometimes they are the only thing that keeps us together on our incessant search for meaning in this directionless, apathetic world. So who are you or I  to say what is and what isn't a legitimate reason to lie?


Mark Twain once said "The truth is the most valuable thing we have" he went to add "that is why I conserve it".


Till next time; always tell the truth even if you have to lie and remember sometimes it is possible to be surer of what is kind than what is true.
This is Zee, the liar.
Signing out.

Same-Sex Families

It seems that in having put off writing this blog, it is now partially topical with the current debate in New South Wales parliament surrounding gay couples' right to adopt.

In case you haven't already guessed, what I want to explore today is the idea of homosexual verses heterosexual parenting, an issue, which, despite my own sexuality, I have often pondered. So after tireless hours, and dozens of psychology journals, I bring you what I hope will be an insightful perspective on same-sex parented families.

Firstly, it is important to consider that there are many limitations looking into so-called "gay families". For this reason you will notice that much of the research relates to families with two mothers as opposed to two fathers (the former being a more legal and viable option at the present time). Thus, please do not assume this is my personal bias, I have tried to include as much information here as possible.

1 in 5 lesbian women and 1 in 10 gay men in the US describe themselves as a parent (very few reliable Australian statistics exist, though I doubt we have less gay parents, more likely an ardent hate of math!).

Just as with heterosexual families however, homosexual families come in a wide variety of types, including single parents (I myself come from a single parent family). Research since the mid-1980's (Golombok S, Spencer A & Rutter M, 1983) has consistently found that parents' sexual orientation does not correlate with changes in children's behavior or social relationships, when looking at single mothers, either homosexual or heterosexual. Moreover, those who had grown up with lesbian mothers (single or otherwise) failed to show any increased likelihood of being homosexual themselves (Tasker FL & Golombok S, 1997).

On a similar topic, Wolf and Mikach (1995) interviewed 75 sons from same-sex families with two gay fathers and found only 9% identified as gay or bisexual (estimates of those with in the general population who identify as gay or bisexual vary from 4-17%).

A study into adolescent health in the United States in 2008 (Udry JR, Bearman PS & Harris KM.) comparing 46 matched pairs of homosexual/heterosexual families found that adolescents in same-sex parented families (average age of 15) were no more or less likely to be romantically involved or show substance abuse or delinquency than their counterparts brought up in heterosexual families.

Consistently, what seems to affect children's social adjustment and behavior most is the warmth and quality of their relationships with their parents, biological or otherwise - gender and sexual orientation aside (ChanRW, Raboy B & Patterson CJ, 1998). This is one effect that I'm sure we have all observed in life, unfortunately abusive and neglectful parents rarely bring up extroverted, conscientious children.

Last but not least, another area which I am hesitant to explore but feel I should mention, is gender roles and gender identity which, while not as widely researched, have not, as of yet, been proven to be influenced by parental gender (Green, Mandel, Hotvedt, Gray, & Smith, 1986) though these roles have only been researched with reference to favorite games, toys and television shows (which, in my eyes, are very subjective measures, as you all know I'm not a huge fan of gender binaries in the first place!).

If anything, what recent research is indicating is that having gay parents may actually be beneficial. Research surrounding the longest running study on same-sex families (the National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study) which has been running since 1986, suggests that children brought up by two mothers are, on average, more intelligent and more socially well-equipped. The children who were tested were aged 17 and compared with a control group born to heterosexual parents from a similar socioeconomic and educational background.

And so as I leave you today, I urge you to speak up in favor of same-sex families, because we deserve the right to 2.5 children and a white picket fence as much as our heterosexual counter parts.
Gay rights are human rights.
This is Zee, signing out.