Is it human or is it dancer?

[j4]

Tomorrow we'll hopefully find out whether the baby is an alien or a predator a boy or a girl. So far I have been told that:

* it'll be a girl because everybody I know has had girls recently
* it'll be a boy because everybody I know has had girls recently
* it'll be a girl because you get more morning sickness with girls
* it'll be a boy because of the position of the bump
* it'll be a girl because of the position of the bump
* it'll be a boy because 'boy' scores more in Scrabble

So that's two answers from people who don't understand probability, three answers which sound to me more like superstition than something which is backed up by any actual research (though I'm happy to be proved wrong), and invisiblechoir being silly. :-)

Two of my colleagues have a bet with each other about which it will be. I don't stand to gain any money from this bet myself, unfortunately. On the other hand, since earlier today one of them couldn't remember which way he'd bet (he'd decided at the time by tossing a coin) I don't think he's taking it that seriously. The other one asked me if I'd tried putting a toad on the bump to predict the baby's sex (I'm not sure quite what one is meant to do with the toad, or wait for the toad to do...?), so I guess he's not wholly serious either. I hope.

I confess I'm keen to know the answer, not least because referring to it as "it" feels awkward. Yes, I may get flamed for Gender Fail, but I'm afraid we're just not progressive enough to try to bring the child up without any awareness of the existence of sex or gender, and let's face it, there's a staggeringly high chance that it will be biologically male or female. Also, I'm going to have at least one more scan after tomorrow's, and I don't want to have to "look away from the screen now" for fear of spoiling the result -- I want to see what's going on! Basically, in most cases I will generally choose the path of More Information.

We also want to start thinking more seriously about names, and it'd be useful to narrow down the choices a bit. Other tactics for narrowing-down include: avoiding names with ambiguous spellings; avoiding extremely long names; avoiding alliteration; and summarily rejecting every single name that appears on this site. So that's a big 'no' to Breckin, Maxigan, Skyler Alexander, Cam'ron, and Kaytaquana. Suddenly, my silly suggestion of naming my child Badger doesn't seem all that ridiculous...

Comments

[sesquipedality.livejournal.com]

Why does no-one ever suggest it might be intersex? Apparently the odds are something like 1 in 100.

[taimatsu]

I suggest Teaygheanne or Na'kay'lah for a girl, and Grizzly or Shark for a boy.

[htfb.livejournal.com]

You'd need at least one of the letters to be on the board already. Scores nicely, though.

[sesquipedality.livejournal.com]

Orlando would be traditional if neither of these options were appropriate.

I have a surefire method

[cleanskies.livejournal.com]

Thread your wedding ring on a ribbon and then get the magic badger your husband to hold it over the bump. If it swings round and round its an alien, if it swings back and forth it's a predator

A shoelace would probably work, too

[bugshaw.livejournal.com]

Brock?

Why only one badger

[celestialweasel.livejournal.com]

I think Badger Badger Badger McKnight has a nice ring to it.

Re: I have a surefire method

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

No no no, you have to walk widdershins around a basket of frogs whilst whistling the theme tune to Bonanza. Otherwise the whole process is FUTILE.

[j4.livejournal.com]

That's much higher odds than I had thought. What's your source for that figure? (The UK Intersex Association seems to suggest (http://www.ukia.co.uk/ukiaguid.htm) that it's 1 in 2000, and while they attribute this figure to a named doctor, they don't actually give a real citation.)

It didn't immediately spring to my mind as an option because to the best of my knowledge I've never met anybody who was (or had been born) intersex, whereas I've met thousands of people who seemed to be quite uncomplicatedly male or female (and quite happy with that). If the baby does turn out to be intersex, well, that'll be jolly interesting, & we'll cross that bridge when we come to it!

[simont]

This Orlando?

(Hmm, there's a thought. Fictional badgers as a source of names ;-)

[beingjdc.livejournal.com]

My friend teaches and has a girl and a boy in her class called, respectively, Pariah and Dash (the registrar's suggestion when they couldn't think of a name on time being to 'just put a dash for now'). Dash is, rather unfortunately, morbidly obese.

Re: Why only one badger

[taimatsu]

That's a *beautiful* name. I'll get embroidering it on things right away.

[abi]

Oi! To be fair I did also point out that DAUGHTER scores more than SON.

[sesquipedality.livejournal.com]

"I read it somewhere, probably on teh Intarwebs" is not a good citation, is it?

I suspect the size of your number depends on how broadly you paint with your intersex brush. I don't think that people fail to consider the possibility says a great deal really. Some people might want to go on about the tyranny of enforced biological duality or other such concerns, but on the whole it should be, as you say, a "we'll cross that bridge if we come to it" issue. My comment stemmed from the slight bizarreness of some of the assertions people made to you, and whimsically pondering why, when everyone has a theory about the baby's gender, no-one ever seems to theorize in respect of none of the above.

Which is to say, I don't really a have a point to make, other than possibly in relation to society as a whole's tendency to simplify very complex things. And I suppose I was trying to be funny. If it fell flat, I'm sorry.

[sesquipedality.livejournal.com]

If it's a badger, j4 should definitely call it Orlando.

[j4.livejournal.com]

Ah, sorry -- this is what happens when I only get your gems of wisdom second-hand from someone who's bitter because you always beat him at Scrabble. ;-)

[j4.livejournal.com]

I suspect the size of your number depends on how broadly you paint with your intersex brush.

Mm. I'd expect the Intersex Association to have an interest in talking the number up as much as possible, so if they've gone for 1 in 2000, I'd guess that's the highest they could get it without lying... </cynic>

when everyone has a theory about the baby's gender, no-one ever seems to theorize in respect of none of the above

Well, htfb is convinced that it's an elephant, and several people have suggested that it might be a badger... does that count? :-}

[j4.livejournal.com]

If it's a badger, I will call it Orlando. I promise.

Re: I have a surefire method

[j4.livejournal.com]

I only had a pastel-blue ribbon, which may have upset the delicate gender balance, but addedentry claimed it was swinging round in a triangle shape, which I think means the baby is a triceratops. I was giggling too much to tell. Also he was totally moving his hand even though he denies it.

If it's a triceratops, I'll call it Trinity.

Re: I have a surefire method

[j4.livejournal.com]

I don't even know the theme tune to Bonanza!

I have seen a big frog in the garden sometimes, but it's hiding. Assuming I find it again, is the basket essential or could I just put it in a tupperware?

Re: I have a surefire method

[j4.livejournal.com]

addedentry says it's actually a toad. This is never going to work.

the colour may have a mild effect, yes

[cleanskies.livejournal.com]

Well now, it wouldn't work if he didn't move his hands, would it?

If it's a Triceratops, can I be Antigodmother?

answer : it's both

[cleanskies.livejournal.com]

Is this an anecdote or an Edward Gorey comic?

[juliet]

angelmine read somewhere that if the foetal heartbeat is 120-140 bpm it's likely to be a boy, and if 140-160bpm it's likely to be a girl. I did not actually check where she got this from, but she said it was Actual Statistics rather than superstition (& she does have a firm grasp on the difference between the two :) ). I did try to time her foetal heartbeat the first time I heard it, but the midwife didn't leave the thingy on for long enough that time, really, and I was a bit self-conscious about obviously looking at my watch :) Anyway, by the time you read this it will probably be moot for you!

[abi]

I sense he will be using the baby as an excuse to get out of next year's matches.