Brains or Brawn but not both

[Spinzonner]

If you're a batty male ...



Big brain means small testes, finds bat study

* 12:16 07 December 2005
* NewScientist.com news service
* Gaia Vince

The brainier male bats are, the smaller their testicles, according to a new study. Researchers suggest the correlation exists because both organs require a lot of energy to grow and maintain, leading individual species to find the optimum balance.

The analysis of 334 species of bat found that in species where the females were promiscuous, the males had evolved larger testes but had relatively small brains. In species, where the females were monogamous, the situation was reversed. Male fidelity appeared to have no influence over testes or brain size.

Both brain tissue and sperm cells require a lot of metabolic energy to produce and maintain. The different species appear to have evolved a preference for developing one organ more than the other, presumably determined by which will help them produce more offspring.

more ...

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8429

[gordonlamb]

1. uh-oh...

So...the sluttier the female the dumber the male? This hardly seems fair! ;)

[Meldread]

2. I'd rather have a big brain than big balls.

Hell, if I could become the smartest person in the world and have the ability to retain ungodly amounts of knowledge simply by hearing or reading it once, I'd cut my own damn balls off. Brains over balls any day of the week for me.

Also, good thing I'm gay. My balls don't give a shit about females. Ha!

I believe Judge Judy summed it up best when she said: "Beauty fades, but dumb is forever."

[bemildred]

3. Correlation is not causation. This is not convincing at all. nt

[DavidDvorkin]

4. Well, that explains high school . . .