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Tag: inclusion

Oceanography’s Diversity Deficit

Posted on February 27, 2024February 28, 2024 By Kersey Sturdivant
Oceanography’s Diversity Deficit
Academic life, Education, Featured, Popular Culture, Science

Centuries of exclusion have resulted in a tangible human diversity deficit, where the diversity of oceanographers does not represent the global diversity of people impacted by ocean processes. Let’s explore the history of ocean science to understand how it ties into and influences the lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in modern day oceanography. … Read More “Oceanography’s Diversity Deficit” »

Academia should be more Skyrim and less Mario Kart to address lack of long-term diversity

Posted on September 12, 2019September 11, 2019 By Michelle Jewell
Academia should be more Skyrim and less Mario Kart to address lack of long-term diversity
Academic life

Many friendships in the 90s were built or lost over who got to select their Mario Kart character first because character selection largely determined whether or not you would win.  SNES Mario Kart designers tried to correct this by crafting tracks that favored one character over others, guaranteeing a win on at least one race. Bowser’s fast top speed and drifting skills made them the best suited character for Bowser Castle’s sharp turns and straightaways.  The icy pools of Vanilla Lake smiled upon Koopa Troopa and Toad’s tight handling and minimal drift, but that was arguably the only track they could dominate.  

Now imagine another version of Mario Kart, but instead of a variety of different tracks that celebrate different strengths, every track was built by Mario.  With Mario as an architect, it’s highly likely that every track would favor his particular set of (minimal) strengths.  This would give the non-Mario players an unintended disadvantage since they would never get a chance to excel with their diverse skills, and the majority of races would consequently be won by Marios.  In many places, this is the current state of academia.  

Read More “Academia should be more Skyrim and less Mario Kart to address lack of long-term diversity” »

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