It’s a Woman’s World

Women are no longer the weaker sex. And in many a fields women have left men panting way behind. Recent studies have shown that not only women are much more efficient than men; their sense organs are also much better developed as compared to men. According to some of the women at the top of the pile in various fields, the ‘feel-good’ factor for women is only a mirage. Women those who occupy the highest positions in their chosen careers believe that they have a long way to go before they can claim that they are satisfied. It’s clearly a case of ye dil maange more.

“Marriage is not high on my list of things to do before I die- I don’t even know if it is in my list at all,” says Trisha Rao, computer professional in the city. Unlike the 70s and 80s, when woman married for social status, security and procreation, the prevailing urban mood suggests that they marry for love and companionship. And while earlier, women were hardly left with a choice- marriage was a source of sustainable income- today, the economics of urban lifestyles has meant many women are in situations where they do not need a prince charming to cart them off their feet. “No marriage is definitely better than a bad marriage. It is better to remain single fulfilled and happy, rather than married, bored and frustrated,” says Trisha.

We are eight years into the millennium. The internet is already seven years old. The origins of the feminist movement are being studied in Universities.  The gay movement is challenging the notion that marriage must necessarily be between a man and a woman. Countries can no longer insulate themselves against cultural invasion brought on by globalization. Like an internet virus, if some thing has to reach you, it will. And the single successful woman is one such phenomenon. Women in the city also want to be a part of this phenomenon. Gitanjali Das, a 30- something interior designer and a singleton by choice says, “I have come across some really interesting men, but did not want to spend my life with them. She values her freedom and independence and wants to spend her free time in pursuing her other interests.

Dr. Abijeet Chaudury, an eminent neurologist from Kolkata says, “Women are much more intelligent and organized than men. And the primary reason is that, the left side of the brain which is responsible for mathemetical, verbal and logical knowledge is better developed in women than in men. That is the reason baby boys start talking later than boy and later on start reading sooner than boys.”

Jayshree Mishra, who runs a playschool in Vizag says, “I have noticed that girls generally pick up rhymes and alphabets faster than boys and they can pronounce it also better than boys.”

Women are capable of multi-tasking. “They are capable of doing two three works at one time. Where as men can do only one work at a time,” says Dr. Chaudhury. The brain of a female always shows activity even when she is asleep.  Dr. Chaudhury further explains, “The female hormones connect better with the nerve fibers in the brain than the male hormones. This makes women more proficient in languages and also adept in multi-tasking.”

According to a research done by H S Marlow at the University of Machusetts, says that in a resting man 75 percent of the activity in his brain is shut down, where as 90 per cent of the activity of the brain of a resting woman is functional. The research also suggests that in women, the two hemispheres of the brain communicate better with each other than in men.

IN a house-hold when we observe we come across the thing quite often, “When the phone rings, a woman attends the call, at the same time continues to give maths home work to her elder child and at the same time feed her younger child a bowl full of porridge,” explains Dr. Chaudhury. A man in a similar situation chooses to go to some solitary corner to attend the phone call. This is simply because a man cannot handle many things at the same time. He is poor at multi-tasking. So if you wish to test a man just love him while he is shaving and you will get the answer!

A study conducted by Deborah Blum, author of ‘Sex on the Brain’, and professor of journalism in University of Wisconsin in Madison, and Joan Mayers Levy, professor of marketing and consumer behaviour at the University of Chicago Business School in early 2004, brought to light  interesting observations in this regard. A group of people were brought to a room and asked to remember various items kept there. Men remembered things like the location of a desk or bookshelf. But women remembered finer details like a vase of flowers in the corner, or picture of a husband and wife on the book case. The conclusion was clear -cut. Women have better eye for details than men. Raquel Gur, a researcher from the University of Pennsylvania, claims, “A woman’s eye displays more white, probably to get a greater range of eye signals into their brains, whereas men have tunnel vision. Since a women’s peripheral vision is much larger, she is good with details.”

Dr. Chaudhury says, “When a woman brushes her teeth her one hand is doing the brushing of her teeth, while her other hand is busy cleaning the sink. And when she finishes cleaning the sink, she starts the washing machine. A man on the other hand will stand in front of the mirror and will move his hand back and forth carefully brushing each and every tooth with maximum concentration possible.”

The study also reveals that hearing ability of women are better than men. Even in an environment with loud music and noise a woman can easily carry on a conversation and can hear every word of the other person. Men on the other hand cannot do that. According to Dr Chaudhury, “A woman’s hearing power is better than a man’s. And it is probably because of this reason a woman finds water dripping from the tap annoying, while it goes unnoticed by a man.

So, if a woman can do everything on their own and support them selves, then why do we need a man? The women from Sex and the City, the American sitcom that showed the dating and sexual lives of four single New Yorkers in their mid-30s, is the bolder TV avatar of Bridget Jones. Both heralded an important change in the life of a single woman though. The spinster became a singleton, a life so far imagined to be desperate and lonely even became the envy of married people. This brought forth a point that a single woman in her 30s could have a life. And a darn good one at that.