Episode 86: Social Implications of Body Hair II

April 27, 2016

“My hair on my head is praised for being so long and beautiful, but my body hair is seen as ‘disgusting.’ Why? They both grow out of my skin.... If someone is offended or disgusted by my natural body hair, then in all honesty, I’m glad it repels them from my life.”

— Elvira, 18, Los Angeles. TotalBeauty.com

Often incorporated into our daily or regular habits after adolescence, body hair becomes relatively mundane to us. We might notice it on occasion or sculpt it in particular ways, ignore it or pay it close attention. What is its relevance in the ways we treat and view one another, as well as our own bodies? How are certain types of body hair policed in some people and not others? This week, we revisit the topic to explore new avenues of discussion and thought.

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Episode 85: How We Teach Sex

April 20, 2016

“By law, all primary school students in the Netherlands must receive some form of sexuality education. The system allows for flexibility in how it’s taught. But it must address certain core principles — among them, sexual diversity and sexual assertiveness. That means encouraging respect for all sexual preferences and helping students develop skills to protect against sexual coercion, intimidation and abuse. The underlying principle is straightforward: Sexual development is a normal process that all young people experience, and they have the right to frank, trustworthy information on the subject.”

— Saskia de Melker, PBS Newshour, May 27, 2015

Without question, sex plays a huge role in our biological, sociological and personal lives. Some treat it with hesitation, others with curiosity and delight and still others find sex to be taboo and unworthy of discussion. But everyone has the right to understand both their sexual identities and the role sex plays in our society. Given its importance, we wanted to examine how it is taught, both in our country and elsewhere. In our conversation, we tackle some of our biases and linguistic choices when talking about sex, as well as some of the dangers of avoiding the topic in conversation with children and young adults. Not only is the issue significant, it is also highly controversial and as always, we welcome alternative perspectives.

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Episode 84: Criminality and Genetics

April 13, 2016

“Social scientists generally, and criminologists especially, often lack the ability (usually due to both ethical and practical concerns) to perform randomized controlled trials, the gold standard of research.”

— Brian Boutwell, J.C. Barnes, The Boston Globe, March 6, 2016

“The way parents treat children is, in part, a product of their own personality and temperament. Personality is partly heritable, so the observation that parents and children tend to have similar levels of self-control could be due to social transmission, genetic transmission, or both.”

— Brian Boutwell, J.C. Barnes, The Boston Globe, March 6, 2016

Invariably, the societies we establish force us to ask difficult questions and often present equally difficult, nuanced and uncomfortable answers. How do we define "justice"? How will we share or distribute resources? Who will defend us? These questions are particularly potent when describing individual behavior. This week, we react to a Boston Globe article entitled "Is crime genetic? Scientists don't know because they're afraid to ask". Would the answers to such questions make us a better society or might they cause even more stratification and division than already exists? After all, crime is both legally and socially determined and therefore might vary between cultures. Furthermore, how does our seemingly unconditional trust in scientists lead us to believe any conclusions they might draw? We explore the ideas surrounding criminality and how developmental mechanisms might also influence what we define as "criminal behavior".

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Episode 83: The War Against Milk

April 6, 2016

“At face value, cutting fat from diets sounded as though it would put you on the fast-track to losing weight. But when people cut fat from their diets, they were more likely to consume other unhealthy additives, said Alexandra Miller, Baltimore-based corporate dietitian at Medifast, a weight-loss program.”

— Danielle Braff, The Chicago Tribune

“Whole milk isn’t made wholly of fat, or largely of fat, or even substantially of fat. In fact, it doesn’t contain much fat all. Whole milk is actually only about 3.5 percent fat. The reason it’s called ‘whole milk’ has less to do with its fat content, than the fact that it’s comparatively unadulterated. As the Dairy Council of California puts it, whole milk is ‘the way it comes from the cow before processing.’”

— Roberto A. Ferdman, The Washington Post

In a world where nearly everyone seems concerned with weight, health and appearance, many folks are concerned with the foods they eat and the connotations attached to their diets and nutrition. As a result, certain items and contents, such as fat, have been stigmatized. People pursue non-fat options under the banner of good health, unaware of potential consequences. Because of this, many of us fail to understand the dietary and biological roles of nutrients like fats, sugars and salts. Our conversation focuses on our relationship to these ideologies through an examination of fat content in different types of milk.

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