Battle of the Sexes

The fairer sex should also be the quieter, according to a new study that found both sexes look more harshly upon couples in which she does the talking. Gender equality be danged, "We have these gender stereotypes where we expect men to be dominant," the lead researcher told LiveScience. "If they're not speaking and taking charge they're not being a man." More »

Women in power provide public services at higher levels, and they get less respect for it, a study of Indian villages shows. Researchers studied the impact of female leadership by tracking a law mandating that women lead councils in a third of villages. The quality of schools, health care and other services spiked as women took the reins—as did public dissatisfaction. More »

Modern love has snubbed its nose at the state, writes Stephanie Coontz in an op ed piece in the New York Times , with 40% of US children now from unmarried parents. So it's time for the law to follow suit, and get out of the marrying business. Marriage licenses—a relatively recent phenomenon, historically—are about conferring "spousal" legal benefits, and those should go along with committed relationships, without regard to marital status.  More »

A Florida woman is suing her husband for a share of the state lottery winnings he neglected to share with her—or mention to her—before disappearing, the Miami Herald reports. Donna Campbell, an ex-model, had no idea that her airline-mechanic husband had shared a $19-million jackpot with 17 buddies from work when she found a postcard in the mail congratulating him on the purchase of his new home. More »

"Stone Age feminism" may have contributed to the Neanderthals' extinction, says a recent study, which uses archaeological evidence to argue that Neanderthal females hunted—and were "stomped, gored, and worse"—alongside males. Pitting the "reproductive core" of a population that never topped 10,000 against giant beasts, reports the Boston Globe , "could bring doom to a hard-pressed species." More »

That Hillary Clinton is breaking the gender barrier in the presidential primaries is not news, but fallout from last week’s Democratic debate is bringing to a head questions of how to campaign as a woman and how to campaign against one. Supporters saw discrimination even as critics accused Clinton of shielding herself with gender, the Times reports. More »

As divorce talks between Paul McCartney and estranged wife Heather Mills collapse, the unhappy couple gears up for a full-blown public trial next February. Mills apparently turned down a $100 million settlement offer, the Daily Mail reports, because it stipulated that she not talk about the marriage in public—something she evidently has set her sights on. More »

Thirty years after his girlfriend disappeared, a onetime playboy lawyer was convicted of her murder yesterday, ending a tangled tale of seduction and bribery that has long fascinated the French Riviera. Although the body of casino heiress Agnes Le Roux was never found, Jean-Maurice Agnelet, 69, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after his third trial, the Telegraph reports. More »

A group of Saudi women is trying to regain a “stolen right”: driving. The group will deliver a petition to King Abdullah this week demanding the right to get behind the wheel. But prospects for lifting the world's only ban on female drivers are cloudy, the BBC reports, because of concerns about women mixing freely with men. More »

Gone are the days of Magnum PI and McGuyver. This fall's primetime lineup is dominated by female characters who are successful, tenacious, and confident—while male counterparts are almost universally sniveling in the corner. But even as she applauds the turning of TV's gender tables, Salon's Rebecca Traister questions the deeper implications for women. More »

France has been gripped by rugbymania as fans descend for the 2007 World Cup, which begins today. Bakeries are offering pigskin-shaped loaves, and Galeries Lafayette offers fan specials as the violent sport becomes suddenly chic. But for the Telegraph 's Janine di Giovanni, one of the most violent sports offers only one real delight: the men. More »

The Tower of London is no longer a man's world—a 42-year-old Scottish woman has become the first female Beefeater. Moira Cameron started work today after 2 months of special training. Like the other Yeoman Warders who work at the tower, she'll guard the crown jewels and lead tours. "This place is magical," she told the BBC. More »

Forbes names the 100 most powerful women in the world, putting Oprah one spot south of Ruth Bader Ginsburg—and placing Meredith Vieira ahead of Katie Couric and Diane Sawyer. The top 10: German chancellor Angela Merkel Chinese vice premier Wu Yi Temasek Holdings chief executive Ho Ching Condoleezza Rice Pepsico president and CEO Indra K. Nooyi More »

When it comes to men, most women just don’t try—try, that is, to be as good as them in sports. After examining several running competitions, the New York Times discovered that while men slow as they age, older women were seemingly doing laps around their younger counterparts. One expert says younger women can be embarrassed to act like athletes. More »

Macho-looking men are perceived as poor parenting material and more likely to cheat on their mates, according to recent study on sex and masculinity. "When people look at masculine faces they see dominance, which is a good thing in evolution but less good in a long-term partner," said the lead researcher. More »

The "N-word" was the first to go, earlier this year, and now New York's city council wants to impose a citywide symbolic ban on another dirty word: bitch. The councilwoman who jump-started the initiative calls the slur "a vile attack on our womanhood," but plenty of New Yorkers disagree. It all depends on context, the Times reports. More »

Women are less likely to initiate negotiations for promotions and raises, which may help explain salary and career gaps between the genders, according to new research. "There is an economic rationale to negotiate, but you have to weigh that against social risks of negotiating,"' one researcher says. "What we show is those risks are higher for women than for men." More »

Men like blond bombshells (and women want to look like them) Humans are naturally polygamous Most women benefit from polygamy, while most men benefit from monogamy Most suicide bombers are Muslim Having sons reduces the likelihood of divorce More »

Women do not talk more than men, despite widely accepted stereotypes in popular culture of strong silent guys and chattering females, reports Time . Both men and women use about 16,000 words a day, with women typically employing a statistically insignificant 500 extra words daily, according to the new research. More »

South Korean women are trying to put a lid on company-enforced binge drinking. As more women climb the corporate ladder, they're fighting back against the male-centric business culture that demands binging to get ahead, the New York Times reports. In a country where an estimated 90% of company events are alcohol-based and job interviews include questions on drinking, that's shaking things up. More »