(the newest messages are at the bottom of the list)

I have added the list of sign-on names to the WebX access list for this program. I seem to be missing a few. Please contact one of us by email if you need to be added to the access list. I have now closed the list to outsiders, and we would like everyone in the class to be able to access it. If you find that you're unable to read or post to the discussion, make sure that you are logged in. Please let one of us know if you are having trouble reading or posting. Thanks.

Sorry, people! Several of you have had questions about the readings described in the syllabus for 19 October. I need to update the webpage. The three chapters by Jared Diamond, from The Third Chimpanzee, discusses sexual selection as applied to humans. Dr Tatiana talked about the evolution of sex ratios in our reading last week. And rather than China, we have a brief article on India. And, of course the readings in social sciences.
News release from the NIH: The human genome is even smaller than we thought, with only 20,000 to 25,000 genes.
Here is a good site for an introduction to cell biology. I suggest the sections on the cell cycle and mitosis and on meiosis. Don't worry about learning the names of the stages of the cell cycle and cell division. I just want you to have an understanding of the fundamental differences between the two types of cell division, because it's essential for understanding asexual and sexual reproduction.

DNA 101 covers the basics. Understanding the fundamentals of Mendelian genetics is a useful contribution to the understanding of evolution by natural selection. A more sophisticated coverage of these topics is in Life: The Science of Biology chapters 10-12. There is much more detail there than you need, but some of the animations and excercises are nice.

Please don't be intimidated by the vocabulary, and don't worry about the details. For an indication of what I think would be useful for you to know, or not, see this page.

Note from STAR: The Society for Trans Action and Resources (STAR) at the Evergreen State College exists in order to provide resources, support and opportunities for activism for the Evergreen and local trans and ally communities. This is our second year in existence and our first year as a funded club. We meet on TUESDAYS at 4:00 PM in SEM2 in B2109 and everybody is welcome. This Tuesday marks our first meeting of the year and will be used to decide on the group's goals and hopes for the year. To receive information on STAR, send an email to star@lists.riseup.net and you will be added. On Monday, October 11th STAR will be supporting the Evergreen Queer Alliance in their observation of National Coming Out Day. Should you wish to come out for coming out day, EQA will be camped in Red Square from 9:00 to 3:00. Readings for this week (30 October): At least one of your faculty, probably me (k), told some people to read some papers that are actually listed several weeks later on the syllabus. If you haven't read anything yet, please do the readings as listed on the syllabus (on the web page) for this week. If you have read them, please try to do at least some of the scheduled readings for this week .
Quiz: this week we will have the quiz, to provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the major facts and principles that we have discussed so far in class.
A recent study shows that male behavior in meadow voles (little mouse-like creatures) can be changed from monogamy to promiscuity by the action of a single gene. This gene affects the production of a single protein that interacts with a hormone called vasopressin. Vasopressin also occurs in humans.
Some of your classmates have posted interesting and insightful comments, questions, and responses on the web discussion. You can join the discussion using the link at left. Let us know if you have trouble getting in. The chat room has been in use also, so check it out, too. Don't just pop in for a second to see if anyone's around -- stay for a few minutes while you're working on something, to give someone a chance to find you. Checking in at an agreed-upon time, such as Wednesdays at 8 pm, would increase the chances of encountering someone.
More on images of women: Britney's Guide to Semiconductor Physics
Sexual anatomy in humans: females, males. Read a brief summary of conditions that result in "ambiguous genitalia." Some intersex people dislike this term; see the Intersex Society of North America.
The Psychologist (August 2004) published some interesting articles on intersexuality (pdf file, 401 kB), with an emphasis on psychological and neurobiological issues.
Some studies, such as this one, purport to show a difference in brain structure correlated with female gender identity in genetic males. But another paper says that this brain difference doesn't develop until adulthood, while gender identity is formed much earlier in life. Does it matter?
Read about women, war, and male violence in Afghanistan
Please be sure to put the words sex, gender and evolution (or, as a minimum, sex) in the subject heading of any emails to the faculty. This enables us to pull up all class emails even when they've been pushed off the screen and we don't happen to remember that your email name is Zargmog73@hotmail.com. Ok?
Found: Yesterday (Sun 7 Nov) someone left a computer disk with their group project paper in the library. Check at the reference desk.
Society and gender diversity in Kuwait, India, and Malaysia (of course no single case represents a whole society)
Did you miss class the day we had the quiz? If so, you can download it (MS-Word format) and do it as a take-home.
Please check the syllabus for 20 November for an update on the reading assignments.
Thanks to one of your fellow students, you can get an update on campus activities for the transgendered community and allies.
Remember that on Saturday, 20 November you will have an In-Class Writing Experience™ that will offer you the opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge you have acquired in this program, the skills you have developed, your comprehension of the key concepts, and your capacity to synthesize the material into a coherent framework. You are strongly encouraged to arrive on time. This will be a closed-book experience.
For a perspective on transgendered identities, see here (although it isn't clear whether the author self-identifies as transgendered or not).
We prefer the APA format (see also here) for your papers. This provides standards on all aspects of formatting, including citations.
Human Sexuality: An Encyclopedia contains a wide selection of short articles on various topics. Most articles include citations of books and journal articles. The Encyclopedia was published in 1994, so it is not entirely up-to-date. There is a Library of Congress citation at the top of the contents page, for citing this source in your papers.
scholar.google.com is an excellent resource for locating peer-reviewed journal articles. Many of the articles can be downloaded as full-text .pdf files. It's very simple to use, and you can see here for responses to frequently asked questions.
We have initiated a discussion to help decide what topics we will include in winter quarter. The sooner you join the conversation, the more you're likely to be heard.
The final days: a comment and suggestions concerning the difficulties of group work. Remember that learning to collaborate and solve problems as a group is an important part of the purpose of the projects.
GenderTalk is a radio show that discusses a range of issues concerning the diversity of gender identity and expression. Programs are archived and available at this site.
What does it mean to be male or female if you're a plant? Why should a program interested in human gender relations read about plants? We'll explore these questions a bit in winter quarter. Meanwhile, here's a grain of sand on the beach of science, from your resident plant geek.
See the list of books for winter quarter. As we did in fall quarter, we will distribute additional readings in class. The readings assigned the first week will be handed out in class.
Why do women live longer than men? See here.
For those joining the class this quarter, we have a packet of five articles for you to read before the first class. You can find these outside my (kh) office door, at B3110 Seminar II.
The Evergreen Drag Ball is scheduled for the 28th of January.
The Evergreen email computer system recently had a major hardware problem. Any emails sent from or to a @evergreen.edu address after 5 January might have been lost. Please resend any important emails.
There are more men than women in science because of genetic reasons, says the president of Harvard University.
Update: Now he says that he made a mistake. What I'd really like to see is the letter sent to him, signed by over a hundred faculty members.
Don't forget the POTLUCK!!
Diligent greeners are welcome to bring their own plates, bowls, cups, and utensils rather than use disposible stuff (which will be available).
Friday 28 January, the Drag Ball (website not updated) will take place "at 8 pm, and will be in the Evergreen State College Longhouse. For a student in their finest clothing the entrance fee will be three dollars, for a dazzlingly dressed community member the price will be five dollars. there will be performances throughout the evening by students and community members, as well as Honey and Charley." See the flyer (pdf format).
RELOCATION: 29 JAN. This week we will meet in room A1105 rather than our habitual E1105. The rooms are virtually identical. The A wing is immediately to the left as you cross the ramp that connects Sem II with Red Square near the grassy knoll.
One of the participants in this program has asked whether anyone in the class would be willing to assist with note-taking. If you're willing to help, especially if you take particularly organized and thorough notes of lectures, discussions, workshops, and other class activities, please let me (k) know. We would only ask that you allow me to photocopy your class notes to share with another student. This might not require any extra effort on you part, and could be very helpful for someone. Please contact me (k).
Read an article about finger lengths and personality on a website at Northumbria University in the United Kingdom. The article is not peer-reviewed, but many citations are provided for further research if you're interested.
Sociobiology, twenty years later: read an article by E.O. Wilson in which he discusses his intentions in writing the highly controversial chapter 27 of his book Sociobiology: The New Synthesis, published in 1975, and also discusses his interpretations of some of the reactions to the book.
In the WebX online discussion, program participants are discussing topics such as crows, tool use, and gender, Joan Roughgarden's book, sociobiology, homophobia, and brain differences. If you haven't yet registered, you can do that here. Then send me an email and I can add you to the list. It's like an online seminar - we'd like to hear what you have to say.
The possible individual research ideas are now posted on the WebX discussion.
Here is an interesting lecture-slide show on kin selection and inclusive fitness.
Here is an article by Joan Silk, an anthropologist, entitled Kin Selection in Primate Groups (peer reviewed: International Journal of Primatology, Vol. 23, No. 4; pdf format, 121KB) (html version: a little messy, but quicker to download)
A good source for cross-cultural studies is the Human Relations Area File, which is a "full-text database of ethnographic materials drawn from government, educational, research, and cultural organization." You can find the link on this page. If you're connecting from off-campus, you'll need to enter your name and Evergreen id number after clicking on the HRAF link.
Here is the handout on individual project papers.
Cuttlefish wimps dress as girls. (Cuttlefish are related to squid.)
Presentation of pair research projects: come to class prepared to give a summary of your research in no more than five minutes. We'd prefer that you not use visual aids (powerpoint etc.); that would just slow things down. We'll have a few minutes for questions after each presentation, and an overview/discussion afterwards. Your focus should be on a clear, concise summary that highlights the essential points of your research.
Study group: On the online discussion group there is a study group developing. If you're interested in joing that or another group, please check the discussion. If you haven't sent me your Webx registration, you can register here with the name of your choice; let me know so i can add you to the access list. Also, if you want to join the study group, let me (k) know and I'll pass on the information.
Foucault Dictionary, Outline of "History of Sexuality", Sex Roles: A Journal of Research
Another reason why women live longer than men: women are far less likely to be struck by lightning.
Are brain differences between males and females permanent?
Kinship structures, death, and inheritance: this article illustrates why our discussion of kinship structures is much more than an academic abstraction. It's in the New York Times for 18 Feb; after 24 Feb you can read the article in our closed discussion group.
Several new articles are posted to our online discussion. Please add your thoughts.
Here are the reading questions (pdf format, 28KB) for the Boylan book.
The California Coalition Against Sexual Assault (CALCASA) announces Prevention Connection: The Violence Against Women Prevention Partnership to build the capacity of local, state, national and tribal agencies and organizations to develop, implement and evaluate effective violence against women prevention initiatives. This project includes online web conferences and an email listserver discussion on violence prevention.
Check out the schedule for the International Womens' Week on campus the first week of March.
Read an interview with Jennifer Finney Boylan.
Here are the guidelines for the individual paper (pdf format, 67KB). This is a slightly revised version that might be helpful if you're still unclear about the assignment.
The Olympia Film Society is featuring two films this week that have sexuality and gender identity as major components of the plot. The films, Kinsey and Bad Education will be shown on Monday, Tuesday, and Thurs (schedule). Bad Education continues next week.
Check the online discussion for an article about being a transgendered college student.
Some things mentioned in the discussion with Marsha, Roxanne, and Lincoln were the Harry Bejamin International Gender Dysphoria Association, including the Standards of Care, and the Ingersoll Gender Center.
Here are some resources for queer-friendly counseling and support.
Remember that on Saturday 5 March there is a quiz and your final papers are due (see the reminders below).
Coming up September 2nd to 5th, 2005: FTM 2005: A Gender Odyssey.
Here is an excellent list of books and other publications on transgender issues.
A few reminders about your paper:
Read about coping in males who have been sexually abused.