IT'S a question as old as Adam and Eve: Are men and women wired differently?

A new study finally confirms that the sexes really do have different brains, and suggests these variations start in the womb.

The conclusion is a controversial one, as many experts think social influences are more important to the distinctive ways that men and women think.

But scientists at New York University Langone say they've narrowed down a biological root after they took brain scans of more than 100 foetuses in the womb.

Study author Professor Moriah Thomason said she was not surprised by the finding.

"There were many differences in the organisation of male and female foetal brains. That's what I would expect," she told The Times.

Her team investigated how connectivity was different in the growing minds of boys and girls.

Scans were taken of 118 foetuses in the second half of pregnancy.

One of the big differences was in connections between distant parts of the brain.

Girl produced more "long-range" neuron networks as they matured in the womb.

While it's impossible to know how this changes the way women think, differences in boys' brains were easier to decode.

Their connections were found to be more changeable than girls'. This may explain why men are more "vulnerable" than women, according to Professor Thomason.

"Males are more susceptible to environmental influences than female babies," she said.

"If that’s true that could partially account for the fact the male is more vulnerable, and programmable."

The finding breathes new life into the long-standing debate over male and female brains.

Some scientists think differences in our minds are mostly shaped by social factors, while others believe we are born with them.

Professor Gina Rippon, a scientist at Aston University, argued that the new study does not prove brain changes begin in the womb.

She said that "in pursuit of a hunt-the-difference agenda" the authors "drew unfounded conclusions".

The research was published in the journal Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience.

A recent study found that women’s brains are four years younger than men’s – and it helps them stay sharper for longer.

Scientists are hoping to get a better understanding of the human mind using "mini brains" grown in a lab.

For anyone worried about losing their marbles as they get older, Elon Musk may have a solution: He wants to "save the human race" by wiring the internet to your brain.