Offspring Sex, Dominance, and Mating Behavior: Examining Evolutionary Mechanisms in Men and Women

Several lines of evidence suggest that parental dominance at conception results in male-biased sex ratios, but no studies have investigated the relationship between dominance and mate preferences in altering offspring sex in humans. Thus, the goals of my dissertation were to examine whether: a) dominance behavior, sexual restrictiveness, self-perceived masculinity and femininity, digit ratios, and hormone levels in men and women who had not yet had children were associated with their predicted sexes of future offspring (Studies 1 and 2); b) predictions for future offspring sex affected men and women’s mate preferences for dominance in the opposite-sex (Study 2); c) men and women’s predictions for future offspring sex were detectable in their facial characteristics (Study 3); and d) the sex of first-born offspring in actual parents was related to their dominance behavior, facial characteristics, and mate choice. The results of these studies provide partial evidence for the hypothesis that maternal dominance characteristics are related to the probability of male offspring, and that this is related to preferences for dominant male mates. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of sex determination, parental ability to maximize their reproductive success through offspring, and sexual selection for male dominance and its associated characteristics

Did you hear what she did to me? Female friendship victimization disclosures offer reputational advantages

Four studies (N = 1,653) tested the hypothesis that sensitivity to victimization in friendships is a mechanism through which women covertly transmit negative social information (gossip) about same-sex peers. In Study 1, women were more likely than men to question a same-sex friendship following violations denoting a friend’s lack of commitment or kindness. In Study 2, women were more likely than men to report disclosing such friendship violations to others. In Study 3, first-person disclosures about one’s own victimization were more trusted and approved than third-person disclosures about others’ victimization, suggesting such statements are not readily recognized as gossip. In Study 4a, men and women reported their female friends disclosed all types of friendship violations more frequently than did their male friends, but especially those surrounding commitment and replacement risk. In Study 4b, female perpetrators suffered worse reputational damage than did male perpetrators following divulgence of their poor treatment of same-sex friends. Taken together, these results suggest women disclose their victimization by same-sex friends, and such disclosures effectively impair same-sex peers’ reputations. These patterns raise the possibility that the greater fragility of female (versus male) friendships results, in part, from this effective, yet covert intrasexual competition strategy

Predictions for Sex of First Born Child Reflect Masculine and Feminine Characteristics in Male and Female Undergraduates

Previous research has identified physical and behavioral differences between parents who produce sons and those who produce daughters. However, the possibility that men and women have predictions about the sexes of their offspring based on these differences, or any other interoceptive cues, has not been investigated. We compared the dominance, sociosexual orientation, estradiol, testosterone, and 2D:4D ratios of men and women who predicted they would conceive a boy as their first child with those who predicted a girl. Women who predicted they would have a boy were more dominant and less sociosexually restricted than those who predicted they would have a girl. Men who predicted they would have a girl had higher salivary estradiol and higher (more feminine) 2D:4D ratios than those who predicted they would have a boy. Possible implications of these results are discussed in the context of evolutionary theory

Androgen Deprivation Alters Attention to Sexually Provocative Visual Stimuli in Elderly Men

Introduction: Testosterone is known to regulate male sexual interest, but the exact way that androgens influence men's sexual cognition remains unclear. Aim: To investigate the influence of androgen deprivation (AD) on visual responses to sexually suggestive stimuli in men treated for prostate cancer with AD therapy. Methods: Patients with AD-treated prostate cancer, patients with prostate cancer not on AD therapy, and age-matched healthy control participants were exposed to images of male and female runway models fully or minimally clothed. Eye tracking was used to compare looking behavior among groups. Main Outcome Measures: Proportion of fixations on fully clothed vs minimally clothed models and proportion of fixations on target areas of interest (ie, legs, chest, pelvis, and face) of fully clothed and minimally clothed models were analyzed and compared among groups. Results: Although men not on AD exhibited a larger proportion of fixations on the minimally clothed compared with the fully clothed images, there was no difference between the 2 image types for men on AD. This was true regardless of whether the images depicted male or female models. Groups did not differ in their fixations to target areas of interest. Conclusion: These results suggest that testosterone can influence men’s visual attention to sexual stimuli; specifically, AD can attenuate the time spent fixated on sexualized targets. Palmer-Hague JL, Tsang V, Skead C, et al. Androgen Deprivation Alters Attention to Sexually Provocative Visual Stimuli in Elderly Men. Sex Med 2017;5:e245–e254

Thigh-length compression stockings and DVT after stroke

Controversy exists as to whether neoadjuvant chemotherapy improves survival in patients with invasive bladder cancer, despite randomised controlled trials of more than 3000 patients. We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the effect of such treatment on survival in patients with this disease

Trust in scientists and their role in society across 67 countries

Scientific information is crucial for evidence-based decision-making. Public trust in science can help decision-makers act based on the best available evidence, especially during crises such as climate change or the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in recent years the epistemic authority of science has been challenged, causing concerns about low public trust in scientists. Here we interrogated these concerns with a pre-registered 67-country survey of 71,417 respondents on all inhabited continents and find that in most countries, a majority of the public trust scientists and think that scientists should be more engaged in policymaking. We further show that there is a discrepancy between the public’s perceived and desired priorities of scientific research. Moreover, we find variations between and within countries, which we explain with individual-and country-level variables,including political orientation. While these results do not show widespread lack of trust in scientists, we cannot discount the concern that lack of trust in scientists by even a small minority may affect considerations of scientific evidence in policymaking. These findings have implications for scientists and policymakers seeking to maintain and increase trust in scientists

Trust in scientists and their role in society across 67 countries

Scientific information is crucial for evidence-based decision-making. Public trust in science can help decision-makers act based on the best available evidence, especially during crises such as climate change or the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in recent years the epistemic authority of science has been challenged, causing concerns about low public trust in scientists. Here we interrogated these concerns with a pre-registered 67-country survey of 71,417 respondents on all inhabited continents and find that in most countries, a majority of the public trust scientists and think that scientists should be more engaged in policymaking. We further show that there is a discrepancy between the public’s perceived and desired priorities of scientific research. Moreover, we find variations between and within countries, which we explain with individual-and country-level variables,including political orientation. While these results do not show widespread lack of trust in scientists, we cannot discount the concern that lack of trust in scientists by even a small minority may affect considerations of scientific evidence in policymaking. These findings have implications for scientists and policymakers seeking to maintain and increase trust in scientists

Azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised, controlled, open-label, platform trial

Background Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatory actions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19. Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients were randomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once per day by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatment groups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment and were twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants and local study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to the outcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treat population. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936. Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) were eligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was 65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomly allocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall, 561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days (rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median 10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days (rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, no significant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilation or death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24). Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or other prespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restricted to patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication. Funding UK Research and Innovation (Medical Research Council) and National Institute of Health Research