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The theme to the 1970s sitcom All in the Family, "Those Were the Days," is a lament for a time when, supposedly, a clear sex and gender binary existed and everyone conformed: "Girls were girls and men were men." What does the science say about these binaries? Are they real? Universal? Unchanging? In this series of three episodes, I explore three common arguments in support of a binary view of sex and of gender: Sexual reproduction requires two sexes contributing in unique ways (Part A); there are obvious physical and behavioral differences between females and males (Part B); and human societies are built on a binary female/male foundation (Part C). What does the evidence say? Are these binaries indeed "facts of nature," and if so, to what extent?
By Heather LooyThe theme to the 1970s sitcom All in the Family, "Those Were the Days," is a lament for a time when, supposedly, a clear sex and gender binary existed and everyone conformed: "Girls were girls and men were men." What does the science say about these binaries? Are they real? Universal? Unchanging? In this series of three episodes, I explore three common arguments in support of a binary view of sex and of gender: Sexual reproduction requires two sexes contributing in unique ways (Part A); there are obvious physical and behavioral differences between females and males (Part B); and human societies are built on a binary female/male foundation (Part C). What does the evidence say? Are these binaries indeed "facts of nature," and if so, to what extent?