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Old 01-04-2013, 12:23 AM   #14
Versus
 
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Join Date: Oct 2010
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Miss Absynthe View Post
I'm not saying that you're being sexist, but could you please elaborate?
As I said, these traits are not conducive to success in a combat career field, but they are not barring in one. I also need to clarify that these are in terms of typical combat careers like infantry, armor, and artillery. I will exclude things that don't pertain to them, such as the advantage that women usually have in fast moving jets that their shorter heart to brain distance provides.

Being female: These are obviously not absolutes, and no two bodies will be the same. That being said, this is typical when looking at males and females of the same body type.

The average 18- year-old male is 70.2 inches tall and weighs 144.8 pounds, whereas the average female of the same age is 64.4 inches tall and weighs 126.6 pounds. This difference in size affects the absolute amount of physical work that can be performed by males and females.

Males have 50 percent greater total muscle mass, based on weight, than do females. A female who is the same size as her male counterpart is generally only 80 percent as strong. Therefore, males usually have an advantage in strength, speed, and power over females.

Females carry about 10 percentage points more body fat than do males of the same age. Males accumulate fat primarily in the back, chest, and abdomen; females gain fat in the buttocks, arms, and thighs. Also, because the center of gravity is lower in females than in males, females must overcome more resistance in activities that require movement of the lower body.

Females have less bone mass than males, but their pelvic structure is wider. This difference gives males an advantage in running efficiency. I'm not sure about how this relates in terms of suceptibility to injuries.

The average female's heart is 25 percent smaller than the average male's. Thus, the male's heart can pump more blood with each beat. The larger heart size contributes to the slower resting heart rate (five to eight beats a minute slower) in males. This lower rate is evident both at rest and at any given level of submaximal exercise. Thus, for any given work rate, the faster heart rate means that most females will become fatigued sooner than males.

The lung capacity of males is 25 to 30 percent greater than that of females.This gives males still another advantage in the processing of oxygen and in doing aerobic work such as running.

A female's response to heat stress differs somewhat from a male's. Females sweat less, lose less heat through evaporation, and reach higher body temperatures before sweating starts.

The army understands these differences and sets a different standard for physical fitness for males and females. I think that to allow females to posses combat jobs, they need to meet the standards for males. Anything less will weaken the unit. That's an easy fix, though. It'll bar most females. I really don't see most being able to realistically succeed given these conditions, but at least the ones who can phsyically hack it will still have access. I can't comment on things like pregnancy other then pulling shit out of my ass, so I won't.

The reason why I mention this is because, I feel like most males would be able to achieve the phsyical fitness standards. I think a lot don't outside of the army because, well, they're just pussies.

As far as being females in our culture... It's really difficult for me to speak objectively. I'm sure I'm not as familiar about these things as some of you. What I'm kind of thinking of are things like females are usually less assertive in a group setting with males then they would be otherwise. Again, not barring, but also not conducive.
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