Why women can't read maps but like shopping

The University of California has undertaken research into why men are better map readers than women while women are better at finding things which have been mislaid. Their theory is that because, in prehistoric times, men hunted, ranging far and wide, they became more accustomed to navigating and scanning the horizon. Women, meanwhile, stayed closer to home and gathered berries. It sounds very plausible, always provided one accepts the premise that, in general, men are better map readers then women while women can find the car keys that the men can't see under their very noses.

Meanwhile, Manchester Metropolitan University has discovered that a woman's love of shopping is a throwback to her days in the caves. Dr David Holmes said: "Gatherers sifted the useful from things that offered them no sustenance, warmth or comfort with a skill that would eventually lead to comfortable shopping malls and credit cards. In our evolutionary past, we gathered in caves with fires at the entrance. We repeat this in warm shopping centres where we can flit from store to store without braving the icy winds."

I make no comment about the cost of such possibly futile research.