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On January 1, 2016, the Southern Fried Science central server began uploading blog posts apparently circa 2041. Due to a related corruption of the contemporary database, we are, at this time, unable to remove these Field Notes from the Future or prevent the uploading of additional posts. Please enjoy this glimpse into the ocean future while we attempt to rectify the situation.
Any female scientist my age (Generation Pre-Internet) can remember when sexism was a standard rite of passage. Truly, you hadn’t ‘made it’ in science until you could one-up your colleague’s harassment story. I remember being enlisted into the Sisterhood of the Travelling Confidants (to quote an old classic), where we laughed at the futility of filing complaints while helping new members process their anger. We were powerless back then… but many.
Then came the advent of ‘social media’, sharing and liking posts, hashtags, connectivity and a voice. This led to the realization that all institutes of every field of science had their own Sisterhoods. One by one, reluctantly, these groups came out of the libraries on the second floor (there’s a second floor??), hidden basement kitchenettes, and forgotten conference rooms. New members, who were younger and more internet savvy than the old guard, took to social media to process their anger. The sisterhoods became solidarities when male colleagues used their position to amplify the messages. Soon, a spotlight was put on our inside joke that reporting harassment to higher-ups was as effective as one of David’s remote petitions, and titans of torment began to fall, one by one, each story more disturbing – at least to those outside of the sisterhood – than the last.
Read More “Remember when sexism in science died? Me neither.” »
Exhibit A. At Boing Boing, Maggie Koerth-Baker publishes an article talking about her disenchantment with Richard Feynman after learning that he was a gigantic womanizing creeper. Matthew Francis follows up with more information about Feyman’s inexcusable behavior. Armies of Feyman supporters rush to his defense, arguing that we should judge him as a product of his times or that he was a great physicist, so we should just ignore the fact that he was a misogynistic creep that, as a faculty member, pretended to be an undergraduate to pick up students. Janet Stemwedel has more.