The quest to close the gender gap in the sciences faces a daunting catch-22: Potential female scientists need the support of existing female scientists. At every milestone on the educational path--early mathematics, college, research grants, and professional careers--the guiding hand of a fellow woman increases the likelihood of smashing the glass ceiling. Proactive measures are being taken, and preliminary research shows that motivational lectures and classroom restructuring might be effective.
The downward pressure exerted on female scientists is an ugly, methodical system that can be traced from adulthood as it trickles all the way down to impressionable young girls. Workplace sexism was actually codified into supreme court law in Bradwell v Illinois, when justices upheld the State’s ban on female lawyers, based on the scientifically rock-solid gut feeling that the law of "nature" declared "the domestic sphere as that which properly belongs to the domain and functions of womanhood."
To read the full, original article click on this link: Female Scientists Face a Catch-22 | Fast Company
Author: Gregory Ferenstein
