Podcast Summary

Podcast: Something You Should Know
Host: Mike Carruthers
Episode Title: Strange Ways Men and Women Differ & Why We Label Some Animals Pests – SYSK Choice
Original Air Date: January 10, 2026
Featured Guests:

• Kat Bohannon, PhD: Researcher, author, "Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution"
• Bethany Brookshire: Science writer, author, "Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains"

Episode Overview

This episode of Something You Should Know dives into two compelling topics: the fascinating, lesser-known biological and behavioral differences between men and women, and the human tendency to label some animals as “pests.” Host Mike Carruthers invites experts to explore what really separates the sexes beyond the obvious, how those differences impact health and society, and then turns to how our perceptions and definitions of pests reveal more about us than about the animals themselves.

Part 1: Surprising Differences Between Men and Women

Guest: Kat Bohannon, PhD

Key Points & Insights

Longevity and Biology, Not Just Behavior

• Women Live Longer: Across mammals, biologically female individuals consistently outlive males, not solely due to risky behavior.
  • [06:15] "There is this really known longevity boost if you are a biologically female person. And that's true across mammals. Like if you're female, you live longer." – Kat Bohannon
• Cellular Differences: The disparity goes down to “male typical” cell behavior—particularly in response to injury and inflammation.
  • [07:11] "There’s something about...how male typical neurons...respond to the signal to commit hairy-carry...If you have a Y chromosome, you're more likely to have a bigger inflammatory response, you're more likely to have bigger long term damage." – Kat Bohannon
• Medical Implications: Researchers are exploring whether giving male trauma patients brief doses of estrogen (estradiol) could lessen damage and extend life.
  • [08:02] "Are there temporary ways to make you maybe more female so that we could make you live longer? That's a really interesting new direction in sex differences." – Kat Bohannon

The Longevity-Frailty Paradox

• Women Outlive but Suffer More Ailments: Despite living longer, women post-menopause tend to have more health complaints, including increased frailty and risk for Alzheimer’s.
  • [10:58] "After menopause, female patients tend to be more frail—we have more health complaints, and yet somehow we’re still out-surviving you guys." – Kat Bohannon
• Hormones and Memory: Hormone therapy during menopause appears to protect women against dementia and osteoporosis.

Other Physical Differences

• Hairiness: Men aren't technically “hairier” per square inch; men and women have similar follicle density, but the type and length of hair differ.
  • [13:05] "You’re not hairier in terms of follicles per centimeter...Technically the hairiest people are blondes." – Kat Bohannon
• Height and Body Size: Human male-female size differences are less pronounced than in other primates, possibly due to evolutionary reductions in male-male competition.

Hearing

• High-Pitch Hearing Loss in Men: Men begin to lose sensitivity to higher frequencies starting in their mid-20s, which can make female voices sound thinner or harder to hear over time.
  • [16:06] "The average male ear is actually losing its ability to hear higher pitches starting at about age 25...female listeners are keeping those higher ranges...for longer." – Kat Bohannon
• Possible Evolutionary Roots: Loss may be due to repair differences at the cellular level, or because women's ears evolved to be more attuned to infant cries.

Cesarean Sections and Childbirth

• Human Birth Is Uniquely Difficult: Childbirth for humans is much more arduous than for most other primates.
  • [20:34] "A first-time chimp mom, the average is 30 to 40 minutes...for humans, 12 to 14 hours." – Kat Bohannon
• On "Natural" Birth: Human evolution may have always depended on assisted birth, making medical intervention “natural” in our lineage.
  • [21:42] "It is natural in a human body to intervene on birth...it's perfectly natural to use gynecological tech to help one another survive." – Kat Bohannon

Hormones and Behavior

• Testosterone Isn't Just for Aggression: Higher testosterone in men is associated with striving for social status—behavior can be affiliative, not just aggressive.
  • [24:18] "Testosterone makes you compete for social status. And depending what's most rewarding in your given social environment for social status, that'll produce that kind of behavior." – Kat Bohannon
• Libido and Birth Control: Testosterone also plays a role in female libido; contraceptive pills lower testosterone and can decrease sex drive.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• [06:15] “If you are a biologically female person...you live longer.” – Kat Bohannon
• [13:05] “You’re not hairier in terms of follicles per centimeter...Technically the hairiest people are blondes.” – Kat Bohannon
• [16:06] "The average male ear is actually losing its ability to hear higher pitches starting at about age 25." – Kat Bohannon
• [21:42] "It is natural in a human body to intervene on birth...” – Kat Bohannon
• [24:18] “Testosterone makes you compete for social status...” – Kat Bohannon

Part 2: Why We Label Certain Animals “Pests”

Guest: Bethany Brookshire

Key Points & Insights

The Concept of a Pest Is Human-Defined

• Pest Status Is Not Universal: Different cultures, and even individuals, have distinct relationships with animals we call pests.
  • [29:33] "The idea of what makes something a pest is about us. It’s about our desires and our beliefs..." – Bethany Brookshire
• Three-Part Definition: Frequency, negativity, and impact of encounters define “pests”—they’re common, cause mild-moderate annoyance, but rarely pose direct threats.
  • [29:56] "I think of pests as not coming for us directly. They're coming for our stuff." – Bethany Brookshire

Cultural Differences

• Indigenous Perspectives: Many Indigenous cultures lack a word for “pest” and view animals as fellow inhabitants rather than intruders.
  • [31:57] "In many indigenous societies, they don't make that distinction. Right. They live in the environment with everything else...." – Bethany Brookshire
• Western Mentality: Western societies tend to separate “human” and “wilderness” zones, fueling the expectation that any animal in the wrong zone is a pest.

Pests as Social Indicators

• Rats and Urban Environments: Proliferation of pests like rats often highlights areas where social infrastructure has failed, not the inherent nature of the animal.
  • [34:32] "The reason we associate those animals with those places is because rats thrive in areas where human social contracts have failed.” – Bethany Brookshire

Not All "Pests" Are Malicious

• Bees, Deer, and Mosquitoes:
  • Bees are crucial pollinators and, in some cultures, even used as tools (like protecting fields from elephants in Kenya).
    • [35:56] "Bees are important pollinators...they are sometimes important predators, which is really nice." – Bethany Brookshire
  • Mosquitoes are “predators” of humans rather than pests because they feed directly on us.
    • [38:50] "Mosquitoes are not pests, they are predators of humans. They eat us."
  • Deer populations often grow due to human changes in land use; their “pest” status is a byproduct of modern life.
    • [39:22] "[High numbers of deer]...is again, because of us. In the 20th century...a lot more suburbs were built....deer populations have skyrocketed because we also aren’t hunting them in the suburbs for safety reasons."

Solutions: Coexistence and Adaptation

• Changing Our Reactions: Immediate extermination (“kill it with fire”) isn’t always necessary or effective. Understanding animal behavior and adjusting our own habits can minimize conflict.
  • [37:01] “Their response when seeing an animal where they don’t necessarily want it is not ‘kill it with fire,’ ...” – Bethany Brookshire
• Learning from Indigenous Knowledge: Indigenous peoples often manage animal “problems” by adapting the environment (removing food sources, modifying spaces) rather than eradicating the animals.
  • [44:50] "They moved the site of their salmon cannery. They got rid of every single fruit tree in the village and they invested in piles of bear resistant trash cans. And they have not had a bear problem since because they decided to live with these animals and not against them." – Bethany Brookshire

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• [29:33] “What makes something a pest is about us. It’s about our desires and our beliefs...” – Bethany Brookshire
• [31:57] "In many indigenous societies, they don't make that distinction...they live in the environment with everything else..." – Bethany Brookshire
• [34:32] “Rats cause real problems for people because people cause problems for each other.” – Bethany Brookshire
• [44:50] “They decided to live with these animals and not against them. And I think that's beautiful." – Bethany Brookshire

Additional Handy Intel

Secure Password Tips

[03:49]

• Combine unrelated words (e.g., "january" + "elephant" = "janufant"), with uppercase letters and numbers for memorability and security.

Car Headrest Safety

[48:42]

• The top of your car’s headrest should be at least as high as your ears, ideally at the top of your head, and within 4 inches of the back of your head to minimize whiplash risk.

Recap: Episode Flow with Timestamps

• [01:17] Quick tip on passwords
• [02:13] Episode outline
• [06:04] Kat Bohannon interview begins (sex differences, longevity, biology)
• [13:05] Hair, body size, evolution
• [16:06] Hearing differences
• [18:57] Cesarean sections and what’s “natural”
• [24:18] Testosterone, estrogen, and behavioral myths
• [27:59] Bethany Brookshire on animal pests
• [29:33] What is a pest? Definitions and cultural context
• [34:32] Social factors in pest problems
• [38:43] Mosquitoes as predators, deer as “pests”
• [41:59] Setting the “rules” for sharing environments
• [44:50] Case studies in coexistence (bears, deer, neighborhood stories)
• [48:42] Quick tip: Adjust your car’s headrest for safety

Memorable Moments

• [08:02] Suggesting ER doctors might one day inject estradiol (estrogen) into male trauma patients to help them survive.
• [20:34] The dramatic contrast in childbirth times—chimp moms can give birth in 30 minutes, human moms... 12 hours!
• [38:50] Mosquitoes reclassified as predators: “They are not attacking our stuff. They are eating us.”

Conclusions & Takeaways

• The differences between men and women are more profound at a cellular and hormonal level than commonly believed—impacting lifespan, healing, and senses.
• What counts as a “pest” is a subjective, cultural invention; these labels are as much about our attitudes and environments as about the animals.
• Coexisting with wildlife is about understanding and adapting, not just eradicating so-called “pests.”
• Practical tips sprinkled throughout (passwords, car safety) offer immediate, actionable intel.

For Further Exploration:

• Check out Kat Bohannon’s "Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution"
• Read Bethany Brookshire’s "Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains"

(Episode skips ads and focuses on the content-rich discussions and actionable insights shared by the guests.)