That uncanny ability to read minds

Now our worst fears have been confirmed. Women can really read minds. Bad news for men and children. Scientists at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom conducted a test of cognitive empathy. Researchers found that women on an average score better on this test.

I remember a niece saying that her mother could not be deceived as she was a mind reader. To make matters worse, she also had eyes at the back of her head. This second observation was based on the fact that her mum seemed to know what she was planning to do (especially if it were something naughty) even if she were not in the same room.

They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul and no one is better at gaining this insight than a woman. She can read someone’s mind just by looking into their eyes.

Most men have discovered this uncanny ability in their wives or partners and some have developed evasive tactics such as avoiding direct eye contact or speaking when safely out of earshot so that there is no chance of any signs of subterfuge or stretching of the truth being detected straight away.

I think that women are more perceptive at reading minds simply because they are more attuned to feelings and emotions and moods and are adept at noting subtle changes in voice or expression or giveaway signs that help them read thoughts which have not reached the lips.

They are better at judging character and their sensitivity to situations or people makes them gain a better insight into others. I have often heard men admit that their wives or partners were correct in their summing up of a friend’s characteristics although they might have vehemently rejected her opinion at first and even told her that she was letting her imagination run away with her. But time has proved her instincts right. Perhaps men are more trusting by nature and not inclined to analyse motives as women do.

The study suggests that a female’s genes are better wired to read emotions by staring into someone’s eyes. The study was able to identify variants in women’s chromosome 3 that help explain their increased ability to read minds. So, men can take comfort from the fact that it’s in her genes, which she cannot really take credit for. The next time your better half crows about her superior skills, you can tell her that she needn’t feel so good about something that she was fortunate enough to be born with. It isn’t a skill that she developed and honed over the years. Or at least this is one way men can feel better about women being one up on them!

After reading the article, I recalled my mother’s uncanny ability to sum up someone merely after one meeting. If it were a friend, I would turn belligerent and tell her that she couldn’t possibly know what the person was like in such a short time. But more often than not she turned out to be right. So, I needn’t have got upset with her. Little did I know then that I could have blamed a variant in a chromosome.

What is remarkable about this is that it isn’t just people whom a woman knows well, but even strangers who can be read like a book. A lot has been said and written about a woman’s intuition and now there is scientific proof to back this claim.

If I were a man I would play it safe and come right out with the truth instead of hemming and hawing and only making the situation worse. This way, there is no need for damage control.

Vanaja Rao is a freelance writer based in Hyderabad, India.