The G-Shot

by Rhyann Bowman

We have all seen those commercials and products about improving sexual experiences for men, from Viagra that treats erectile dysfunction to Extenze that serves as a “natural male enhancer”.  But rarely do we see products and commercials that cater to female sexual gratification. That is, until now. Up until the 1950s, female sexuality was a confusing topic and was seen as an illness. Doctors of the 19^th century would be very pleased to know that knowledge about female sexual gratification has greatly progressed. Developed by Dr. David Matlock, the G-Shot (clinical description: G-Spot Amplification or GSA), is a simple, nonsurgical, physician-administered treatment that can temporarily augment the Grafenburg spot (G-Spot) in sexually active women with normal sexual function.[1] In this process, the G-Spot is enlarged and, as a result, the chance of orgasm is greater. Most of the women decided to get the G-Shot were saified with it. If a woman can’t orgasm under regular conditions, the G-Shot isn’t going to help because the whole point of it is to enlarge the G-Spot so that it's easier to orgasm, not to make it possible to orgasm. Recently, Dr. Matlock has made improvements on the G-Shot. It will last between 3-5 months and the process only takes about 30 minutes; the women can start testing it out within four hours.[2]

                                          

                                   

I think that this product sits well with most women. Often, maybe a little too often, we see commercials about how to increase pleasure for men in a sexual encounter. This has been an issue for hundreds of years in America. Female sexuality was seen as an illness and it was a complicated subject for many people. However, the sexuality of men always came first. It was made sure that the needs of men were met first, whether it pleased the female in the process or not. Even though the needs of females are recognized more today, there are still signs that males are considered first. As I said, we see products for men like Viagra and Extenze but what commercials do we have for women? Instead, women are given commercials that encourage phone sex and hotlines late at night. It’s extremely sexist of America to make men first. Although America has always been a sexist nation, I think it’s time for a change and males and females should be considered equal.

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[1] Sinha, Sayontan. G-Shot Amplification, "thegshot.com." Last modified 2013. Accessed February 28, 2014. thegshot.com.

[2] Snow, Isabella. AskMen, "askmen.com." Last modified May 2013. Accessed February 28, 2014. askmen.com/dating/love_tip_300/393_love_tip.html.

Since When Did We Breed Slaves?

By: Gyovanni Boston-Crompton    

I have always known about the harsh treatment of slaves which was taught through most of my history classes over the years. Even through all the stories of these slaves being beaten and the women being raped by slave masters, it honestly shocked me when I heard that they had breeding programs for the slaves. I do understand that many of the slaves did not want to produce offspring but the way slave owners made these programs as if these human beings were some type of animals. Now that I think of it many people tend to think that many African-Americans are well at certain things, such as sports, due to them being bred that way during slavery. In order to understand these stereotypes you need to understand the history first.

Slave breeding is a practice from slaveholders who tried to influence the reproduction of slaves for their own self-profit and gain. It involved forced sexual affairs between male and female slaves, as well as with slave masters and female slaves. These programs began after the outlawing of importation of new slaves and the rapid growth production of cotton in 1808.[1]  Due to the fact that the death rates of slaves were very high and in order to regain the loss of slaves they began to encourage them to start having children. To reassure that these programs would work these slave women were promised freedom only after they were able to bare fifteen children. These women were expected to have their first child by the age of thirteen and at least five by the age of twenty. [2] These breeding programs were defended by the southern states. Also, many of the states that breed slaves had less agriculture than the states that bought slaves.[3]

Even after two hundred years these breeding programs people are still affected by these breeding programs due to the stereotypes that come with it. Many people know the stereotypical thought that many black cannot or they are afraid to swim. Although most people can say that the reason behind this is due to the fact that swimming pools were not located near most of the black families but all honesty research has proven that no matter the race usually if a parent does not partake in the activity, like swimming, or are afraid of doing that activity their children is less likely to learn how to do it as well.[4]

Today as a young African-American female who has lived with these stereotypes all my life I can understand now that these stereotypes are somewhat true. Even though I know that personally I would not be able to live through a time where at one point I would be forced to bear children but I commend my ancestors on striving thorough these horrible years and because of them I am here. I guess strong genes run do through the family.

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[1] Creative Commons Attribution, "Women and Slavery - Slavery in the U.S.." Last modified 2014. Accessed February 27, 2014. https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/slavery-and-reform-1820-1840/slavery-in-the-u-s/women-and-slavery/.

[2] John, Simkin. Spartacus Educational, "Slave Breeding." Last modified January 2014. Accessed February 27, 2014.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USASbreeding.htm?menu=USAslavery.

[3] Wordpress, "Slave Breeding in the South| The Common Room." Last modified September 28, 2012. Accessed February 28, 2014. http://thecommonroomblog.com/2012/09/slave-breeding-in-the-south.html.

[4] Amy, Bass. Salon Media Group, ""Slave Genes" Myth must die. ." Last modified July 24, 2012. Accessed February 28, 2014. http://www.salon.com/2012/07/25/michael_johnsons_gold_medal_in_ignorance/.

Homosexuality in America

By Victoria Ambrose

Homosexuality in America has often been viewed as a touchy subject in our society today to many people across our country. Although some people are quick to judge, they are often misguided by not knowing the truth about homosexuals and even themselves, heterosexuals. [2] If you look at recent data that has been compiled, you can see that even though America is accepting of homosexuals at a large rate, they are rather small in the global rate of homosexuality acceptance. One driving factor that most researchers agree on is the fact that America has a large religious presence which shifts the views of the people. Now in America, the homosexual is viewed and accepted widely, with tons of research and scientific studies showing that being gay could be traced back to your genetics and not be entirely a choice. [1] Between 2003 and 2013 the percentage of those in favor of homosexuals rose almost twenty percent. Since most Americans are choosing to be in favor, it is easy to see why most teens are starting to lose their faith in religion. Among these groups, 24 percent of them claim that the main reason for leaving their childhood faith was the fact that they mistreated and viewed gays unequally. This was very different from the more strict and conservative America in the 1970’s, where gays were viewed in negative fashion. Now not only are gays accepted, but also the civil liberties and laws for gays are starting to shift largely in their favor. Although this affects most of the society, the government is still a bit iffy on how they choose to view genders and sexual orientations in our nation. [3] A quick example of this is the fact that most government and private agencies refuse to ask any questions about gender preference or sexual orientation. The whole problem derives from the fact that most homosexuals seek to find an identity for themselves but are often blocked and misguided by societal tendencies and government regulations. The way that I look at this is with an open mind. I like to think that gender isn’t defined as only male and female but instead just left alone and not asked at all. I think gender is defined by so many different characteristics that it is too difficult and annoying to make a survey that includes all the genders in the world as options. I am glad that the views on homosexuality are changing and I hope more people continue to keep being accepting of all people.

1. Harms, William. NORC, "Americans Move Dramatically Toward Acceptance of Homosexuality." Last modified 08 08, 1997. Accessed February 28, 2014. http://www.norc.org/NewsEventsPublications/PressReleases/Pages/american-acceptance-of-homosexuality-gss-report.aspx.

2. Horowitz, Juliana. Pew Research Center, "Americans less accepting of homosexuality than other westerners – religion may be one reason." Last modified 06 12, 2013. Accessed February 28, 2014. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/06/12/americans-are-less-accepting-of-homosexuality-than-canadians-western-europeans-and-religion-may-be-one-explanation/.

3. Ford , Milt. Grand Valley State University , "A Brief History of Homosexuality in America." Last modified 05 14, 2013. Accessed February 28, 2014. http://www.gvsu.edu/allies/a-brief-history-of-homosexuality-in-america-30.htm.

The Sex Scholar: Clelia Mosher

By: Kiara Bell

Clelia Mosher was a Stanford professor who surveyed women throughout the late eighteenth century on their sexual behavior.[1] Mosher was born in Albany, New York in 1863 and died in 1940. Unfortunately, when she had passed away, her work and discoveries had yet to be published.

          Mosher was the daughter of a doctor who introduced her to the world of physiology. Her father brought her along during on his rounds and she began to fall in love with the medical world. After discovering this new profound love for physiology, her dream took a few steps back when her father forbade her from going to college. He was a supporter of the Spencerian notion, which stated the body was a closed energy system and if women were to go to school and get an education, it would mislead a necessary amount of energy from the uterus to the brain and would inhibit the ability for a woman to reproduce.[2] So, instead of allowing her to take charge and follow her dreams, he set her up in a florist shop. I find that incredibly sexist, as most things were back then, and degrading.

          On the bright side, when Clelia Mosher was 25, she saved enough money to enroll at Wellesley College. Later, she transferred to the University of Wisconsin her junior year and finally to Stanford University for her senior year in college.[3] In which she later returned to become a part of the Stanford faculty as an associate professor. While she was a student at the University of Wisconsin, she created a survey and began collecting data based on the sexual attitudes and habits of women. She took this survey over a twenty-year span and had about 45 profiles in all. There were various responses to the survey, some of them women interviewed admitted they enjoyed and desired having sex while others disagreed. Of the 45 profiles, 35 of the women reported said they desired sex; 34 reported having had orgasms; 24 of them admitted that having sex for pleasure was the main reason they participated in it; and about three-fourths of the women said they engaged in sex at least once a week.[4] Mosher’s research disproved many assumptions of women’s sexuality during the Victorian Era.

          After finding out that the majority of Mosher’s research in college was focused on women’s health issues such as: female physiology, hygiene, and sexual attitudes, I was surprised to see that Mosher was socially awkward and had no male suitors or even friends.[5] Clelia Mosher only had imaginary friends to whom she would write letters to, she was a brilliant yet odd scientist who yearned for intimacy and relationships.

Although Mosher passed away before she got the chance to publish her findings, a Stanford historian named, Carl Degler, discovered her statistics on menstruation, letters, and all of her surveys and made them public in 1974. She provided historians all around with the truth of how women viewed sex during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

         

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[1] Platoni, Kara. "The Sex Scholar." Stanford Alumni, March 2010. https://alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/magazine/article/?article_id=29954 (accessed February 25, 2014).

[2] James. ABC News, "Victorian Women Liked Sex, Says Early Survey." Last modified April 12, 2010. Accessed February 27, 2014. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/victorian-women-sex-americas-dr-ruth/story?id=10334865&page=2.

[3] The Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives of The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, "Clelia Duel Mosher Collection." Accessed February 27, 2014. http://www.medicalarchives.jhmi.edu/papers/mosher.html.

[4] James. ABC News, "Victorian Women Liked Sex, Says Early Survey." Last modified April 12, 2010. Accessed February 27, 2014. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/victorian-women-sex-americas-dr-ruth/story?id=10334865&page=2.

[5] James. ABC News, "Victorian Women Liked Sex, Says Early Survey." Last modified April 12, 2010. Accessed February 27, 2014. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/victorian-women-sex-americas-dr-ruth/story?id=10334865&page=2.

Condoms Through History

By: Marcus Beasley

            When you think of contraception, the first thing that usually comes to mind is condoms. Condoms are one of the most common forms or birth control and STD prevention because they are small and can fit almost anywhere. If you have ever wondered when condoms were first used or if they have always looked the same, this blog will answer those questions.

            The condom is actually older than you

might think. The earliest condoms were made from pig intestine and were first introduced in 1640. [1] It may be surprising that condoms have been around for so long. The first condoms made from animal intestines were the first ones that the public could buy, but because of their price, many people reused them.[2] I find it pretty disgusting that animal intestines were used for condoms, but I guess that is what had to be done.

            Condoms have advanced tremendously since the first ones that were available to the public. Sometime in 1839, Charles Goodyear, found out a way to make rubber more elastic than it would be if it were not processed. The very first condoms made from rubber were super thick and probably did not feel very good on the man that was using it.[3]

            There were other types of condoms that existed during the time period of first rubber condoms. The other type of condoms that was used was a small rubber cap that would only cover up the glans and the problem with these is that they could easily be lost and they could also be too tight.[4] Condoms have obviously advance since the early days because now most condoms are made from rubber latex.

           The most common type of condom that people think about and know most about is the modern condom. Most people have at least held one and knows how thin they are and what they look like. Modern condoms are super durable and can be stretched extremely far. There are different type of condoms for people who are allergic to latex can use. The alternate to latex condoms are polyurethane and lambskin.[5]

            Condoms have obviously came a long way since they were first made available to the public and I am sure it is a very good thing that they have. The very first condoms seem to be extremely uncomfortable and I am sure nobody enjoyed using them. Nowadays condoms are available pretty much anywhere you go and their change through history has been a positive one.

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[1] Crystal Moore, "Sexuality Within The Victorian Family." (unpublished lecture., UNCC, ).

[2] Escobar, Samantha. "The Condom Timeline: A Detailed History Of Wrapping It Up." Accessed February 26, 2014. http://www.yourtango.com/2013189729/condom-timeline-detailed-history-wrapping-it.

[3] "Condomerie." Accessed February 26, 2014. http://condomerie.com/geschiedenis_condoom?___store=italiaans&___from_store=francais.

[4] "Condomerie." Accessed February 26, 2014. http://condomerie.com/geschiedenis_condoom?___store=italiaans&___from_store=francais.

[5] Mike, Hatcher. "History of condoms from ancient times to the present." Last modified December 27, 2012. Accessed February 26, 2014. http://www.examiner.com/article/history-of-condoms-from-ancient-times-to-the-present.