Scientists Who Are Searching for a "Gay Gene" Have Been

question 66

Multiple Choice

Scientists who are searching for a "gay gene" have been criticized by sociologists for their narrow understanding of sexual orientation,which does not take into account the way biology and the social environment interact to produce sexual behaviors.Which of the following theorists makes this point?

• A) Simon LeVay, who believes that "there's growing evidence to support the idea that biological and developmental factors before birth exert a strong influence on sexual orientation"
• B) Dean Hamer, who examined the DNA of forty gay brothers and found that thirty-three of them had a statistically significant similarity in the Xq28 region of the X chromosome
• C) Social historian Jeffrey Weeks, who points out that even though homosexual acts have been documented throughout history, homosexual identity as we know it today didn't exist before the twentieth century
• D) Laura Allen and Roger Gorski, two scientists at UCLA, who reported that a segment of the fibers that connect the brain's hemispheres is up to one-third larger in homosexual men

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Definitions:

Related Children

Children who live in a household and are related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption.

Transitory Income

Temporary earnings that can cause fluctuations in an individual's purchasing power and consumption habits.

Permanent Income

An economic theory suggesting that people's consumption choices are influenced more by their lifetime income expectations than by their current income.

Economic Mobility

The ability of an individual, family, or some other group to improve (or decline) their economic status, typically measured over generations.