Between XX and XY

<i>On October 10 1970 the day she was born she was named Dorothy Maree Alaniz--a baby girl. Curiously though no one filled out a birth certificate that day. When the certificate was finally filed on November 5 the name on it was Rudolph Andrew Alaniz. Within less than one month after her birth this girl became a boy.</i> </p> </p>Every year in the United States more than two thousand children are born with an intersex condition or disorder of sex development. What makes someone a boy or a girl? Is it external genitalia chromosomes DNA environment or some combination of these factors? Not even doctors or scientists are entirely clear. What is clear is that sex is not an either-or proposition: not girl/boy XX/XY switching between two poles like an on-off switch on a radio. Rather sex is like the bass and treble knobs on that radio.</p> </p><i>Between XX and XY</i> provides a fascinating look at the science of sex and what makes people male or female. There are people born XXY XXXY or XXXXY or with any number of variations in X or Y chromosomes but those who do not fit into society's preconceived notions about sex often face a difficult path in life. </p> </p>Dr. Callahan explores why humans are so attached to the idea of two sexes and examines our obsession with sex and sexual intercourse through the ages.</p>