A recent report from Joseph T. Lurito and his colleagues at Indiana University School of Medicine indicates that there might be gender-based differences in temporal lobe activity during passive listening. Briefly, listening elicited bilateral temporal lobe activation in females, whereas activation in males was mostly seen in just one hemisphere. This work, presented at the Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, immediately caught the attention of the media, triggering a profusion of headlines, most of which linked the findings to the alleged inability of males to listen to what they are told.

Women use more of brain when listening, study says.

Confirming what many women have long suspected, new brain research released Tuesday shows that men give only half a mind to what they hear, listening with just one side of the brain while women use both.

Los Angeles Times 29 Nov.

You weren't listening dear . . .

The proof is in for something women long have suspected: men listen with only one side of their brains while women use both sides.

Reuters 28 Nov.

Using half a brain — it's a guy thing, study says.

Chicago Tribune 29 Nov.

Fortunately, most of the reports went on to explain in more accurate terms the findings and their possible interpretation. However, in an age when public grasp of science is a key aspect of science policy, it is important to transcend the funny headline when disseminating scientific findings. Unless, of course, the public uses only half their brain when they read.