Research at Stanford has solved the mystery of the mind. Have you ever heard the saying, “Men are from Mars, and women are from Venus”? This may be more of a cliché in the modern day, but a new study out of Stanford University suggests there could be some truth to the reasons and methods used by one gender over the other. The research was published in the February 19 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
They developed a new AI model that, with 90% accuracy, can distinguish whether brain scans come from men or women. According to Vinod Menon, Ph.D., director of the Stanford Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Laboratory and a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, “A key motivation for this study is that sex plays a crucial role in human brain development, in aging, and in the manifestation of psychiatric and neurological disorders” (as stated in a press release).
How a person’s biological sex affects the structure and operation of their brain is an old topic of scientific controversy. Although it is known that hormone exposure is influenced by sex chromosomes, it has proven tough to link sex to specific brain abnormalities.
There has been little proof of gender differences in brain anatomy or function in prior studies. However, Menon and his colleagues analyzed brain images using sophisticated AI and massive datasets. In comparison to earlier approaches, its model consistently differentiated between sexes’ brains. This achievement indicates that previously unnoticed sex differences in the brain are detectable. These results are more convincing since the model consistently performs well across different datasets.
Complexity Of The Examinations:
Some areas of the human brain are more prominently colored in a way that can be used to identify a male or female brain. The researchers found specific “hotspots” where the model was able to make the most accurate predictions.
There are three main networks in the brain: the default mode network, which is responsible for self-reflection, and the striatum and limbic networks, which play a role in learning and reward processing. Â “Identifying consistent and replicable sex differences in the healthy adult brain is a critical step toward a deeper understanding of sex-specific vulnerabilities in psychiatric and neurological disorders”, as Menon put it.
Their AI model was able to handle MRI images that were in motion. It was able to distinguish between male and female brain scans in the majority of the 1,500 that the scientists tested it on. The findings provide compelling evidence that sex plays a significant role in how our brains are organized, according to Menon.
People may use their AI models for a wide variety of tasks, according to Menon. “A researcher could use our models to look for brain differences linked to learning impairments or social functioning differences, for instance — aspects we are keen to understand better to aid individuals in adapting to and surmounting these challenges.”
Then, they started to wonder whether there was another model they might use to forecast performance on specific activities depending on gender-specific brain characteristics. They developed gender-specific models that were more accurate predictors of men’s and women’s cognitive performance. This demonstrates that gender-based cognitive differences can influence behavioral patterns.
Although they applied their model to examine gender differences, Menon claims it can be applied to investigate the relationship between brain connections and any cognitive capacity or behavior. They intend to make their model available to other researchers.
