13 Really Nifty Facts about Men

by Jenny Hansen

 

I’m kind of a “dude.” I don’t know if it’s because I was influenced by my big brother (the Bag Whore) or if it’s just because my mama was kind of a tomboy. But I dig males. I find them fun and fascinating, and refreshingly straightforward.

In honor of “the guys,” here are 13 interesting facts about men.

(I will confess that I deleted most of the negative facts on murder, suicide rates, etc…we like happy facts!)

1. The brains of adult men are about 10% larger in total size than the brains of women. Because men generally have a larger stature and more muscle mass than women, their brains require more neurons to control the body.
2. Scientists have further discovered than men’s and women’s brains actually function somewhat differently. When focused on a task, men tend to use only one side of their brain at a time, devoting all of their attention and concentration to the task at hand. Women, on the other hand, tend to use both sides of the brain at the same time, making them more adept at “multi-tasking.”
3. The “Adam’s apple,” or laryngeal prominence in the neck, is a feature primarily unique to adult men and is a result of the growth of the larynx during puberty. The term is derived from the Biblical account of Adam eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.
4. For approximately the first six weeks after conception, all human embryos develop as a default female child, primarily taking genetic information from the mother’s DNA. After the sixth week of development, if the embryo is male, the SRY gene on the Y chromosome will begin to produce androgens, primarily testosterone, that encourage the development of male characteristics and inhibit the further development of female characteristics.
5. Here’s one the guys will like: In terms of absolute size and in proportion to overall body mass, the human penis is longer and thicker than that of any other primate.
6. In most cultures throughout the world, boys historically experienced a rite of passage that marked their transition into the lives of adult men. Examples of traditional rites of passage include the Bar Mitzvah in Judaism, the “vision quest” in many American Indian tribes, and circumcision rites in many African cultures. (Holy cowbell! They do that to teens?? Ouch!)
7. Teenage boys are four times more likely than girls to drop out of school and represent more than 75% of the children referred to special education in the U.S.
8. While men currently represent an even 50% of the U.S. workforce, they account for 94% of all on-the-job fatalities.(Wowzers.)
9. Prior to the 1900s, male nurses were far more common than female nurses in nearly every country in the world. In current times, men now make up only 5.4% of registered nurses in the U.S. and only 13% of new nursing students in the now-female-dominated field.
10. The average adult male has about 50% more muscle mass and 50% less body fat than the average adult female. (This explains why hubby is kicking my a$$ on the Crossfit weight loss.)
11. The word “dad” entered the English language in the sixteenth century and is believed to have originated from the Welsh word tad, meaning father. The word “father” comes from the Old English term faeder and was first used in the 1500s.
12. According to a 2008 estimate, there are approximately 140,000 stay-at-home fathers in the U.S. who are the primary caretakers for their children while their wives work outside the home. (Awesome!!)
13. The first Father’s Day celebration in the U.S. was held on June 19, 1910, in Spokane, Washington, and was conceived of by Sondra Dodd. After listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909, Dodd wished to have a day of recognition for her father as well. (Love this!) Father’s Day became a nationally celebrated holiday in 1972 when the third Sunday in June was designated by public law as a day of recognition for fathers.

Look how fascinating you men are! If you need more, these facts came from RandomHistory.com and here’s the full list.

What facts about men did I miss ? Which of the above is your favorite? Who is the most interesting man you know? Tweet me at and let me know!

~Jenny

 

About Jenny Hansen

By day, Jenny provides training and social media marketing for an accounting firm. By night she writes humor, memoir, women’s fiction and short stories. After 15 years as a corporate software trainer, she’s delighted to sit down while she works.

When she’s not at her personal blog, More Cowbell, Jenny can be found on Twitter at or at Writers In The Storm. Jenny also writes the Risky Baby Business posts at More Cowbell, a series that focuses on babies, new parents and high-risk pregnancy.

© 2013 Jenny Hansen. All content on this page is protected by copyright. If you would like to use any part of this, please contact me at the above links to request permission.