# Are the multiple penetrations that occur in sex biological or cultural? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 28, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222 "2015-03-28T17:40:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Umbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Umbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Umbridge)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/1 "2015-03-28T17:40:27Z")
Are the multiple penetrations that occur in sex biological or cultural? The title is the main question. I am asking this, because my mind has been obsessed about this thought (about sex) for several days (2 weeks, perhaps?). In 8th grade Spanish class, we were playing charades. One vocabulary term was “esquiar”, which meant “to ski”. Some kids probably likened it to sex, and the term was banned from the class. I asked the teacher about the term, and she whispered, “sex”. Of course, at the time, I didn’t understand how that answered my question, as my own thought of human sexual intercourse was a man and a woman literally sleeping in close proximity and kissing, and the kissing caused the pregnancy. I am 24 years old now, and having watched Youtube videos with gratuitious sex scenes and sex guides (i.e. Sex Ed the Series), I acknowledge that sex involves multiple penetrations of the penis in the vagina, and the participants make mumbling vocalizations, and maybe a couple of bed-creaking. Honestly, I have a hunch that this method of sexual intercourse is largely cultural, not biological or universal (about Earth). I do not think that my parents would care so much about sexual performance in the bedroom, let alone using birth control or engaging in non-procreative sex or a scandalous pre-marital/extra-marital sex. I am certain that my parents do not use birth control or contraceptives, and since I am the only child, I do not think they have ever used birth control or contraceptives. And they are still married, and they seem to be very supportive of each other, making sacrifices for each other. But they must have had sex in order to conceive me. And no, I don’t think I was conceived through in vitro fertilization. I think that would happen in a first-world country, not a second-world country. Anyway, I am wondering if there are other ways that humans have sex. Can sex ever be non-erotic? Can people downplay sexual pleasure? Can a woman get pregnant without the male achieving orgasm and hence ejaculation? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/2 "2015-03-28T18:47:26Z")
Everywhere in the world where people reproduce, which is everywhere in the world, sex involves insertion of the penis into the vagina. It may involve many other things as well, but it always involves that. This is not in the least cultural. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/3 "2015-03-28T19:36:20Z")
wut ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/4 "2015-03-28T19:37:08Z")
> [@Umbridge](#): > > Can a woman get pregnant without the male achieving orgasm and hence ejaculation? [Sure.](http://www.infertile.com/infertility-treatments/sperm-aspiration.htm) Doesn’t sound like any fun at all for the guy, though. ---
**Author:** ![Umbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Umbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Umbridge)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/5 "2015-03-28T19:53:40Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Everywhere in the world where people reproduce, which is everywhere in the world, sex involves insertion of the penis into the vagina. It may involve many other things as well, but it always involves that. This is not in the least cultural. This does not answer my question at all. My question is talking about _multiple penetrations that occur in sex_, and whether or not that is biological or cultural. > [@elfkin477](#): > > [Sure.](http://www.infertile.com/infertility-treatments/sperm-aspiration.htm) Doesn’t sound like any fun at all for the guy, though. Sperm aspiration treatment is a recent development in the past 5 years. Obviously, I was born way before that time period. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/6 "2015-03-28T20:04:07Z")
I had PIV sex long before ever seeing it done, and my parents never had the Talk with me. Figured out that it required multiple rhythmic thrusts pretty easily. It’s instinctual. OP, you seem quite naive. You may want to go talk to a girl. They don’t generally stab. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/7 "2015-03-28T20:11:38Z")
“How is Babby…” …ahhhh, nevermind. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/8 "2015-03-28T20:18:01Z")
I wonder if the OP has been reading [IKEA erotica](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IKEAErotica)? It’s more than one insertion of tab A into slot B in real life. If you put aside cultural human pornography and watch wildlife documentaries of other mammals mating, you will see that the multiple penetrations are biological. After all, we humans are also just mammals, like you’ll see on the Discovery Channel ([cite](http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCQQyCkwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dxat1GVnl8-k&ei=-gsXVeOxFeqw7Aafs4Bg&usg=AFQjCNE6KtutFBRYc0Nf2VP3OvGHQGAkAA&sig2=qkw1yV910FiOVWNiLGwihw&bvm=bv.89381419,d.ZGU)) ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/9 "2015-03-28T20:22:12Z")
> [@Umbridge](#): > > … I am 24 years old now… And this is the most surprising thing in the OP, I expected around 10 years less:eek:! What the rest is concerned: there are plenty of non PIV ways of having sex, but PIV repeatedly (… somehow I think of something else when I read “multiple penetration”) is the norm. Not only in humans, but also with other mammals. ---
**Author:** ![tnetennba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tnetennba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tnetennba)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/10 "2015-03-28T20:22:40Z")
Multiple penetrations? No, most guys put it in and leave it in until they come. I’ve read that there might be a little oozing of sperm before the ejaculation but I think it’s safe to say a very high percentage of pregnancies are due to ejaculation. Your parents probably enjoyed sex, no matter how unpleasant it is to think about. There are plenty of ways to have sex but only one results in pregnancy. Hope that clears things up. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/11 "2015-03-28T20:29:42Z")
> [@Umbridge](#): > > I am 24 years old now, and having watched Youtube videos with gratuitious sex scenes and sex guides (i.e. Sex Ed the Series), I acknowledge that sex involves multiple penetrations of the penis in the vagina, and the participants make mumbling vocalizations, and maybe a couple of bed-creaking. There are better websites than YouTube to do research on this mattter (RedTube, YouPorn, etc.) You may need to disable the filtering your parents have set up on the computer, though. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/12 "2015-03-28T20:41:28Z")
> [@Umbridge](#): > > Sperm aspiration treatment is a recent development in the past 5 years. Obviously, I was born way before that time period. Oh, I see. No, your parents had regular old sex, and your dad probably thrust several times before he ejaculated. That’s not really “multiple penetration,” though, unless they also used a sex toy in another orifice at the same time. I also find it curious that you think that being an only child is proof your parents didn’t use birth control - logic suggests that it’s stronger evidence that they did use it than didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Umbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Umbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Umbridge)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/13 "2015-03-28T20:42:53Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > I wonder if the OP has been reading [IKEA erotica](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IKEAErotica)? It’s more than one insertion of tab A into slot B in real life. > > If you put aside cultural human pornography and watch wildlife documentaries of other mammals mating, you will see that the multiple penetrations are biological. After all, we humans are also just mammals, like you’ll see on the Discovery Channel ([cite](http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCQQyCkwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dxat1GVnl8-k&ei=-gsXVeOxFeqw7Aafs4Bg&usg=AFQjCNE6KtutFBRYc0Nf2VP3OvGHQGAkAA&sig2=qkw1yV910FiOVWNiLGwihw&bvm=bv.89381419,d.ZGU)) The idea that animals in nature would generally have multiple penetrations is inaccurate. The number of penetrations actually depends on the species. In many fish species, the eggs and sperm are actually outside the female body. Angiosperms may use the wind or animals to pollinate them and to be pollinated. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/14 "2015-03-28T20:50:46Z")
Cinnamon Imp said mammals, not animals in general ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/15 "2015-03-28T20:57:40Z")
> [@Umbridge](#): > > The idea that animals in nature would generally have multiple penetrations is inaccurate. The number of penetrations actually depends on the species. In many fish species, the eggs and sperm are actually outside the female body. Angiosperms may use the wind or animals to pollinate them and to be pollinated. What, precisely, is your point? We are not fish, nor are we angiosperms. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/16 "2015-03-28T21:06:04Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > What, precisely, is your point? We are not fish, nor are we angiosperms. Apparently it’s a cultural thing among us mammals. ---
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/17 "2015-03-28T21:14:51Z")
Angiosperms are not animals, they are plants. ---
**Author:** ![Ramira](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ramira/32/344_2.png) [@Ramira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ramira)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/18 "2015-03-28T21:26:18Z")
It seems to me that the OP history suggests some difficulties in understanding sex…: [Prostitution for desperate women…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=751950)[1](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=751950) [2](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=751950&page=2)) Umbridge [RIGHT] 03-23-2015 09:41 PM ``` [/RIGHT] [51](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/misc.php?do=whoposted&t=751950) 2,901 [General Questions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/forumdisplay.php?f=3) [Perception of heat in sexual arousal](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=752047) Umbridge [RIGHT] 03-23-2015 09:19 PM [/RIGHT] [5](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/misc.php?do=whoposted&t=752047) 765 [General Questions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/forumdisplay.php?f=3) [Term for unintentional sexual innuendos?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=752040) Umbridge [RIGHT] 03-20-2015 11:25 PM [/RIGHT] [16](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/misc.php?do=whoposted&t=752040) 1,174 [General Questions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/forumdisplay.php?f=3) [Angle degree and movement in human copulation](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=750614) ``` ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/19 "2015-03-28T21:31:54Z")
I’m going to cut through the crap here. Umbridge, assuming you’re at all sincere, you’re clearly a virgin, and quite sheltered as well. Thus you’re missing something that is obvious to others: the rhythmic thrusting you so decry feels really good. That’s why we do it. Sex is fun, and the fact that it is is quite important. Mammals in general and humans in particular have evolved to feel pleasure in the act of coitus, thus making reproduction more likely. That is what we mean we say that the rhythmic thrusting is biological in origin. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2015, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222/20 "2015-03-28T21:41:09Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Umbridge, assuming you’re at all sincere, Dude, weren’t you recently hospitalized? Hope you’re doing well. Watch your hydration, and take care with the pain meds.😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-the-multiple-penetrations-that-occur-in-sex-biological-or-cultural/716222.md?page=2)