transcript

If there are a lot of numbers involved, better call a man to do the job.

Experiments have shown that men and women perceive women as being worse at math.

The world of major academies of science were founded in the 17th century during the European Renaissance. When was the first woman admitted into the Academy of Sciences in Paris? In 1979!

Even today, math based careers remain dominated by men.

85% of engineers in the world are men. Around 75% of people in the data and the industry are also men. And 70% of those employed in scientific research? So maybe women just aren't good at these things? Not at all. Studies have found that there's little difference between boys and girls' performance in math at school.

What is different though is that girls express far higher anxiety levels about their math's performance. This is a result of girls getting influenced by societal notions reinforced by their teachers, peers and parents that they don't have a natural inclination or talent for math and science, usually regarded as boys' subjects.

This stereotyping of men being naturally more gifted at math and science is pervasive. For the longest time, popular culture reinforced the trope of the genius scientist who is usually male, white and disheveled. A 2016 study found that people were more likely to ascribe light bulb moments of genius or effortless brilliance to male scientists, while they were more likely to attribute women scientists' success to sustained hard work.

When we frame this raw brilliance as a male characteristic, society subtly reinforces the notion that women can't be pioneers in these fields where genius is required.

But it's not like women haven't been successful when they've pursued science and math, just that society has often failed to recognize their successes. Think Rosalind Franklin with the double helix, Margaret Knight, who invented the paper bag machine, and Ada Lovelace's computer programming findings.

And unfortunately, a hypermasculine hostile environment is the reality in STEM fields even today. For female students, not only is there a lack of role models, but they're far more likely to be subjected to harassment or bullying from their fellow students and faculty. Even in countries like the US and Australia that have managed to increase women's enrollment in STEM subjects in college, work cultures often make them feel like they don't belong. For instance, despite women getting higher grades in engineering courses than men, 40% of American women with engineering degrees either leave or never enter the field. But women around the world are beginning to question these biases that are keeping us out of STEM.

To be able to create a scientific culture that is truly robust and expansive, we need to rethink how we conceive of scientific aptitude. Because it's not just bad for gender equality, but also for science itself. Scholars point out that as more women have entered fields like medicine, biology, primatology, it has actually expanded the general knowledge created in these fields, impacting not just what scientists choose to study, but the methodology they use to study it.

So let's commit to making scientific inquiry and practice more inclusive, because science and society only stand to gain from it.

That's it for this week's video in the Overthinking It series. If you enjoy overthinking with us, please don't forget to like, share, subscribe to this video and don't forget to hit that bell icon so you stay updated.

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