# Guess my gender! **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 11, 2003, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987 "2003-09-11T15:34:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SentientMeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SentientMeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SentientMeat)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/41 "2003-09-12T14:31:42Z")
On second thoughts, wasn’t it a _Vogon_ constructor fleet? ---
**Author:** ![TVAA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TVAA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVAA)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/42 "2003-09-12T14:36:17Z")
And I somehow doubt the Vogons had ambassadors. They wouldn’t be invited to that kind of party. ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/43 "2003-09-12T14:36:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gyrate \* > \*\*Based on a detailed analysis of your posts, you’re clearly either a hermaphrodite or a eunuch. \*\* Ah, but how **much** of a hermaphrodite? Is (s)he a [merm, a herm, or a ferm](http://www.buddybuddy.com/beeman-1.html)? (Does a woman who’s had her ovaries removed count as a eunuch? Or do they have a different word for that, like “feunuch” or something?) ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/44 "2003-09-12T14:43:26Z")
Spoiler for the google impaired: [Matthew George](http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/m/s/msg159/) ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/45 "2003-09-12T14:49:24Z")
Well, that doesn’t work real well as a spoiler. Sorry, **TVAA**. ---
**Author:** ![TVAA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TVAA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVAA)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/46 "2003-09-12T14:52:20Z")
Aw, how cute. You found my little brother’s biology webpage. I didn’t know he’d kept that up. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![TVAA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TVAA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVAA)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/47 "2003-09-12T15:09:50Z")
Come on, you kwazy peoples. Leave the nice Aide’s family out of this, pweeze. [great big puppy dog eyes] Pweeeeeze…? ---
**Author:** ![SentientMeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SentientMeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SentientMeat)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/48 "2003-09-12T15:11:34Z")
In an effort to return to the Debate aspect here, I have heard it said that in evolutionary psychology terms males may actively seek the intellectual locking of horns, as in Great Debates, whereas females are more averse to such competition and prefer to seek empathy and understanding, which may be more plentiful in other forums. This might explain, if such is the case, a male preponderance in GD. Of course, most of evolutionary psychology is a bunch of arse. ---
**Author:** ![TVAA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TVAA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVAA)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/49 "2003-09-12T15:18:01Z")
Interesting. Would you suggest that your perception of my intellectual “aggressiveness” causes you to perceive me as male? ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/50 "2003-09-12T15:19:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SentientMeat \* > \*\*Of course, most of evolutionary psychology is a bunch of arse. \*\* \ Is not! ---
**Author:** ![Fatwater\_Fewl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4491bb/32.png) [@Fatwater\_Fewl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fatwater_Fewl)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/51 "2003-09-12T15:48:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TVAA \* > \*\* > Does a person’s gender actually shape the way they think? It is possible to determine (or at least make a judgment that’s better than chance) a person’s gender from the way they post, argue, and write in Net communities? > > \*\* I don’t think people’s gender (or sex) necessarily shapes the way they think and, by extension, the way they express themselves in any forum, net communities included. However, people’s environments, backgrounds and upbringings, along with the cultural tendencies which may have been exhibited by elders of both sexes during the formative years, probably does shape the way people express themselves. It might be postulated that the traces of these influences are difficult to eradicate, and may appear (especially as people immerse themselves deeply in debate) in posts in unconscious textual/subtextual forms such as phrasing, word and image or analogy choices, and patterns and forms of approaching a debate. These sorts of things, I suppose, would also apply to the readers of posts and probably exert a (perhaps) subliminal influence on the readers’ perception of those posts and the sex of the authors. I’d be interested in seeing the results of a study done on such things. That said, I think **TVAA** is male. ---
**Author:** ![SentientMeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SentientMeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SentientMeat)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/52 "2003-09-12T15:49:02Z")
> [@](#): > > Would you suggest that your perception of my intellectual “aggressiveness” causes you to perceive me as male? Yes, although were you to reveal yourself as female (_cf._ Finbar Saunders, Viz) I would not be _surprised_, just _wrong_. ---
**Author:** ![Ramanujan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/51bf81/32.png) [@Ramanujan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ramanujan)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/53 "2003-09-12T16:57:04Z")
it seems to me that in general, one’s personality ought to be different based on one’s age, sex, race, etc. regardless of what you start off with, society treats different people differently. women are treated differently than men, and have been throughout recorded history. as a result, different people tend to respond differently to different things. women tend to be more sensitive to gender issues, non-whites to race issues, etc. also, there are different physical makeups (in men and women at least) that are likely to shape a person’s behavior in ways that might be discernible from writing. so, assuming people in general know how different people respond to different stimuli, i think it ought to be possible with an accuracy greater than chance could account for to guess a person’s gender on a message board. as for **Vorlon** , i’m gonna have to agree with **Sentient** that your at times overly aggressive responses give you away for a male. all that said, there is obviously always room for specific cases that don’t follow the normal pattern. note that i used the term “general” quite liberally. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/54 "2003-09-12T18:16:13Z")
While I knew your old user name, I wasn’t aware that TVA’s Aide was female. I simply assumed that you were male because you post about rather abstract topics and your posting style does not give off a ‘male vibe’. Still, several of my female friends could write similarly with similar interests. The ‘vibe’ is not an infallible intuition, only a first-order approximation on the basis of what little data there is to go on by, so to speak. But since gender is found to be so important in daily interactions, it is natural to form preconceptions about someone’s gender on an anonymous medium like the SDMB. Hence I subconsciously form an opinion, which in your case said ‘male’. I’m happy to correct it if I have reason to. This thread already makes my conception somewhat shaky. Since this is GD, I’ll try to make my subconscious reasoning somewhat more explicit. From what I’ve experienced, women tend to be subject to more peer pressure to socialize. Hence it is uncommon to meet women who will restrict themselves to discussion in a purely factual manner. This translates to SDMB to remaining in the GQ/GD fora, without also venturing into the more social IMHO and MPSIMS. Among men it is more common to encounter such restricted posting styles and interests (the one need not imply the other, though). Furthermore most women I’ve discussed with will at times show an (understandable) sensitivity to issues that relate to feminism and the position of women in society. If a poster never contributes to such threads, that again puts a little more weight into the ‘male’ scale’ of the balance. I’ve seen this with both **Walloon** and you. With **Walloon** I’ve been told I was wrong, so I could well be in this case, too. The ‘aggressiveness’ that was mentioned by others doesn’t factor in my reasoning, though. I’ve met women who were tenacious in their reasoning as well, and posters like **Susannan** to name one are sufficient proof for their existence on SDMB as well. BTW, I also was wrong with **Ice Wolf** , who is a more ‘social’ poster. So maybe there is indeed something more to it: I may also tend to have ‘male’ as the default assumption. Mmmm, this calls for some serious soul-searching. So, when are you going to let the cat out of the bag (so to speak)? The suspense is killing me. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2003, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/55 "2003-09-12T21:36:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tusculan \* > **I simply assumed that you were male because you post about rather abstract topics and your posting style does not give off a ‘male vibe’.** Um … are you sure that “not” should be there? ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2003, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/56 "2003-09-13T10:33:21Z")
No. (if I agree with, you, we can hardly call it a debate, can we?) ---
**Author:** ![green\_bladder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@green\_bladder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/green_bladder)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2003, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/57 "2003-09-13T14:28:09Z")
When I first joined I was concerned that people wouldn’t know whether I was male or female (without judging from my posts). Then it slowly sunk in when I realised that a silly handle like mine couldn’t possibly be created by a female, instead more like something a bunch of guys came up with whilst pissed drunk at a pub. 😃 **Tusculan** , I too was wrong abuot **Ice Wolf**. It’s a gender-neutral name, and I guess I also automatically choose to believe everyone is male unless the handle is obviously female or proven otherwise. It’s a pretty stupid way of going about things, but I guess that’s just the way I am. **TVAA** - male (when are we gonna find out, by the way?) 😉 ---
**Author:** ![SnoopyFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@SnoopyFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnoopyFan)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2003, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/58 "2003-09-13T14:50:45Z")
I’m wondering the same thing, green\_bladder. Two days of suspense over someone’s gender is enough. Confess, TVAA! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2003, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/59 "2003-09-13T14:52:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TVAA \* > I tried to thank you for correcting me about raindrops, but I couldn’t contact you. \*\* [sticking my neck out] You are female. I’ve worked in predomiantly male and predominantly female environments. It always strikes me that the differences between the sexes when it comes to voluntary polite gestures of good will are so entrenched. [/sticking my neck out] ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2003, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987/60 "2003-09-13T16:07:48Z")
I would have said female for sure if you’d never started this thread, but this seems like such a male thing to do. So I can only conclude that you are a mannish woman. Or a womanly man. Or possibly a kraken. BTW, I have been mistaken for a man on these boards many times. I have no idea why. I use a feminine username (more feminine than my legal name!), I post about women’s issues, I do all the girlie things. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guess-my-gender/200987.md?page=4)