Friday, April 21
if a man's ring finger is longer than his index finger, he has high levels of testosterone.

Boys will be boys

Our perceptions of agreeableness exactly mirror the action of the male sex hormone testosterone. Several studies have shown that testosterone tends to make men more confrontational and anti-social.

Testosterone is responsible for masculinizing the face, but it also has well-known effects on behaviour.
Professor Dan Olweus and his team at the University of Berggen in Norway tested the effect of testosterone on the behaviour of a group of teenage boys. They found that contrary to predictions, high levels of testosterone were not associated with overt aggression in teenage boys.

But the boys with the highest testosterone were more irritable and disagreeable. They also displayed an aggressive response to provocation, being more likely to answer back to a teacher that criticised them.

Professor Allan Booth and Dr James Dabbs of Penn State University have even shown that, in a group of US air force servicemen, males with testosterone levels significantly above the average were 50% less likely to marry, which may suggest they have difficulty co-operating in a partnership with another individual. Testosterone is also responsible for giving a face its masculine qualities.

But this shouldn't be viewed as an excuse for grouchiness or bad behaviour. Testosterone only seems to have this effect in the proportion of the population whose brains are predisposed to such behaviour.

There seems to be an equally important proportion of high-testosterone individuals who do not try to dominate through anti-social behaviour. This sort of behaviour would seem to cause downward mobility in the class system. But studies have found no evidence for a concentration of high-testosterone males amongst socioeconomic groups with low incomes. Instead, they are evenly spread across society.
1:22 PM

Tuesday, April 18
i've been reading The Grizzly Maze. it's very poorly written yet it's managed to instill in me a healthy (?) fear of bears. if they attack, it seems like there are 2 various ways to react. one is to roll up into a ball and protect your head. they like to crush it in their jaws. if they attack you once and you play dead, they will seem to go away but in fact they are stalking you to see if you're truly dead. so don't move for a very very long time. the second way to hopefully scare them off is to make a lot of noise and flail about, making yourself seem bigger. of course, pepper spray and even a gun make for a good defense if you have time to use them. the majority of bears are said to be very tolerant of people.
12:06 AM

Monday, April 17
i didn't realize i liked easter so much, until i didn't celebrate it. will do something for the Eastern Orthodox one, next weekend. it's the dyed eggs and chocolate bunnies i want - among other unrelated things and dreams.
1:59 PM

Monday, April 10
while rainy Saturday was slow, Sunday more than made up for it w/ a bike ride in Prospect Park, special watermelon drinks, and a discovered passion for linocut printmaking. it was great to use my hands to cut and ink and peel, vs. type and "apple-Z". you don't need to be miserable to create art. Happiness - Balance - Joy - Love - FEELING.
11:27 AM

Tuesday, April 4
Pew - why didn't my mother marry my father?

She never had the time. He came and went.
Why didn't Babel Dark marry Molly?
He doubted her. You must never doubt the one you love.
But they might not be telling you the truth.
Never mind that. You tell them the truth.
What do you mean?
You can't be another person's honesty, child, but you can be your own.
So what should I say?
When?
When I love someone?
You should say it.

-- Lighthousekeeping by Jeanette Winterson
7:50 PM

Monday, April 3
Tell me a story, Pew.

What kind of story, child?
A story with a happy ending.
There's no such think in all the world.
As a happy ending?
As an ending.

-- Lighthousekeeping by Jeanette Winterson
12:41 PM