All Bark, No Bite

Last night, I went to yet another talk about women in science. This time the talk was given by an institute for research on gender issues. I am a little surprised the topic has such staying power and, to be honest, I am a little tired it. How many times must we mention there is lack of women in science? How many anecdotal stories are needed before we can all agree there are some discrimination issues? How many issues must be researched before we start actually trying to fix the problem? When words like "self-actualization" are being bandied about, I start to question if real progress is going to come about.

For all the fire and brimstone inspired by Summer's comments, has any university done an external investigation on its science departments? Has any science department done its own survey on the role of gender and any resulting discrimination? Can someone please tell me about someone who's done something? 'Cause other than Harvard's $50 million for their task force on women in science, I haven't heard of any action from other universities and it's starting to piss me off.

Comments

[Sean]

Some places are catching on; if nothing else, there were a whole bunch of symposia about the problem. More substantively, the NSF has the ADVANCE program:

http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5383&from=fund

that funds efforts to increase women's participation in science. There are active examples at various places:

http://sitemaker.umich.edu/advance
http://www.engr.washington.edu/advance/
http://advance.colorado.edu/nsf_advance.html

Still just a drop in the bucket in the big picture.

[Brewtus]

I just completed my PhD in engg from University of Texas. We had some initiatives at the students level atleast in engg, but you are right, a lot still needs to be done.

[damtp_dweller]

I'm unsure what Summers' comments have to do with the point you're bringing up unless you're arguing that discrimination against women in science is based solely on their male colleagues' preconception that women are naturally less able to perform first rate research than men. Could you clarify this?

[Brad Hansen]

The Hubble Telescope Science Institute did do a fairly specific
investigation, prompted by some feelings of dissatisfaction by
some of the folks there. You can find the report and responses
on the Institute website
http://www.stsci.edu/institute
(see window on the right)

[Kevin]

My department (chemistry) has an ADVANCE program, but the physics department doesn't. Half of my assistant professor colleagues are women. Our incoming graduate class was 22/17 (female/male).

In a couple years, this is really just going to be a physics problem. Of course, physics has other problems.

[Amanda]

The AIP did a study (http://www.aip.org/fyi/2005/035.html) fairly recently on women in physics and astonomy that concludes the problem is losing girls early on, in middle school and high school. Things like Sally Ride's Toy Challenege and other outreach programs aimed at these girls will hopefully increase the number of women who stick with physics in undergrad.

I know, doesn't really help those of us who get to be the one woman in the lecture room...

[Kevin]

Amanda points to the "leaky pipeline", and how it starts draining early.

If this is really true, then we should not be seeing the onset of gender parity in non-physics sciences (like chemistry and biology). As I noted above, in my department, and in many others, we are seeing a trend towards parity.

Physics is doing something wrong.

[Caolionn]

Ahhh, THANK YOU!

It is nice to actually see some action. I realize there is still far to go, but it makes a difference knowing somebody is trying to change the problem, not just talk it to death.

Dweller: I was just mentioning that Summer's comments were really the catalyst to discussing the issue of women in science & engineering. Not surprisingly, women in these fields disagree that it is an innate biological difference but more of a cultural/societal issue, which needs to be addressed.

Kevin: Damn, you know we're in trouble when the chemists are kicking our ass in gender parity.

[m.visaya]

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''\\ that's how it lies in wait.

a head over heels question... (abb-639)