Hope everyone is enjoying their Thanksgiving break!
We've got some interesting articles this week!
First, we have a New York Times article discussing how the science field is not immune from issues of harassment. In an effort to combat this issue, the director of the National Science Foundation, Dr. France Cordova implemented a condition to institutions who accept NFS grants. Now, institutions who accept NSF grants must disclose any finding related to harassment on the part of the scientists working under the grant, or risk losing funding. Read on about this critical step and more in promoting the representation of women in science!
This article describes how a paper from Princeton University found that having women as chairs of departments helps to improve gender diversity and equity. This finding lends further evidence to the idea that "managers from different backgrounds often take different approaches, highlighting the value of diversity among decision-makers."
While this next article is from 2013, and can be a candidate for "Flashback Friday," I'm sure we can all relate to its contents! Yes, we are scientists! Yes we are women! Why must our marital status or number of children be brought up? Cue the Finkbeiner Test! Or, 7 ways to avoid gratuitous gender profiles of female scientists!
Dr. David Smith tackles the differential perceptions of parenting and calls for "Family-Friendly Science." Smith goes on to describe any kind of leave related to childcare taken by subscribers of a particular Chemistry society was comprised of 95% women and 5% men. While women are frowned upon for not being the primary caregiver, men are often lauded as super dads for doing any kind of parenting.
Related to the previous article, this Opinion piece in The Guardian suggests that fathers ought to take home economics classes in order to be better prepared for helping out at home.
Have a great weekend everybody!
Friday, November 23, 2018
Sunday, November 18, 2018
Our Picks for November 18, 2018
This week, we highlight a recent report from the Irish Research Council featuring their strategies to support gender equality in research careers. It includes concrete actions as well as data on funding applications, awards and success rate compared by gender in the last 5 years.
This article focuses on the increase of women representation in careers that were historically dominated by men, and encourages women to keep applying to these type of jobs to reach a new balance.
In the political sphere, Secretary DeVos' proposed Title IX Rule aims to change the definition of sexual harassment in schools and the consequences for students to report it. This proposal has received mixed opinions, including a response from the Association for Women In Sciences that expresses concern about this change. This article lays out the reasons why the proposed changes might be problematic for Survivors.
And to end on a more positive note, this article narrates the life story of Dr. Jane C. Wright, a pioneer in chemotherapy and a great example of a woman who fought to break the barriers imposed to female scientists of her time.
Dr. Jane C. Wright (source)
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
Our Picks for November 13, 2018
We hope those of you who attended had a fun and productive SfN! Thanks to all who came out to our social. We hope it was one way to ameliorate potential for isolation of such a large conference.
Authorship disputes -- contentious discussions about who is an author, who is the first author, or who is the corresponding author -- are probably more common than most scientists would like. That's because the order of authorship and the designation of corresponding author affect how people view the contribution of each author. A recent study analyzed authorship position in ecology and evolution papers. Many of their findings are interesting, but perhaps most striking to me was this: "Women were less likely to be authors on papers with male last authors, and all‐male papers were more abundant than expected given the overall gender ratio." Women were also less likely to be last or corresponding authors.
A recent study (link to a blog post about the study) shows that women in geoscience are more likely stay in geoscience if they have female geoscientist role models. More evidence that representation matters!
Kimbery Tommy calls for scientists to listen to people of color in science and to act against racism in science. Only with such action, she argues, will we be able to increase the number of women of color in science. The stats she cites: "Women remain the minority in science, technology, engineering and mathematics commonly known as STEM, it is estimated that globally women account for only 30% of scientific positions, although accounting for almost 60% of the university population. Of that 30%, less than 5% are black."
Terry McGlynn calls for men to take action to advance gender equity in academia. He argues that gender inequality won't be solved until men change their actions. He offers advice on how men can educate themselves about the issues and tips on how they can act. Share this with your male colleagues!
Elife recently published an article with a list of evidence-based recommendations for improving gender equity through recruitment. The recommendations include creating identified positions that are only open to women and people of other underrepresented groups in departments lacking diversity. They also advocate for redefining merit to focus on the quality rather than quantity of research, as focus on quantity can be biased against women.
Studies on Gender in Science:
Authorship disputes -- contentious discussions about who is an author, who is the first author, or who is the corresponding author -- are probably more common than most scientists would like. That's because the order of authorship and the designation of corresponding author affect how people view the contribution of each author. A recent study analyzed authorship position in ecology and evolution papers. Many of their findings are interesting, but perhaps most striking to me was this: "Women were less likely to be authors on papers with male last authors, and all‐male papers were more abundant than expected given the overall gender ratio." Women were also less likely to be last or corresponding authors.
A recent study (link to a blog post about the study) shows that women in geoscience are more likely stay in geoscience if they have female geoscientist role models. More evidence that representation matters!
Opinions/Calls to Action:
Kimbery Tommy calls for scientists to listen to people of color in science and to act against racism in science. Only with such action, she argues, will we be able to increase the number of women of color in science. The stats she cites: "Women remain the minority in science, technology, engineering and mathematics commonly known as STEM, it is estimated that globally women account for only 30% of scientific positions, although accounting for almost 60% of the university population. Of that 30%, less than 5% are black."
Terry McGlynn calls for men to take action to advance gender equity in academia. He argues that gender inequality won't be solved until men change their actions. He offers advice on how men can educate themselves about the issues and tips on how they can act. Share this with your male colleagues!
Evidence-based Recommendations/Literature Review:
Elife recently published an article with a list of evidence-based recommendations for improving gender equity through recruitment. The recommendations include creating identified positions that are only open to women and people of other underrepresented groups in departments lacking diversity. They also advocate for redefining merit to focus on the quality rather than quantity of research, as focus on quantity can be biased against women.
Sunday, November 4, 2018
Our Top Picks for November 4, 2018
SfN 2018 is on!! Meet us today, November 4th, 2018, at San Diego Marriot Marquis Grand Ballroom 8 from 6:45 to 8:45pm to break the barriers for young women in neurosciences! A lot of great mentors for the evening will assist and be available to meet and chat, don't be shy and swing by!
Shutout to 15 Spanish female scientists who created the group "Women in science count" to share their science with the general public through libraries, museums and prisons.
This webpage gathers fun infographics about women in tech, to improve visibility of women in STEM careers and offer role models to younger generations.
In this article, the New York Times analyzed the dynamics of replacing male-occupied jobs by women after the rise of the #MeToo movement.
Last week, we highlighted an interview of the 2018 Physics Nobel Prize Laureate Dr. Strickland. This week, another woman scientist, Dr. Francis Arnold, joint winner of the 2018 Nobel prize in chemistry, talks about her ground-breaking research and sexism in science.
This article published in the Boston Globe compares how differently men and women receive feedback and how it impacts productivity.
Finally, this article examines a report of the Council of Graduate Schools stating that for the 9th year in a row, US Universities have awarded more PhD diplomas to women than men. The article dissects this phenomenon by field and how this can impact work environment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)