Friday Links

Various posts and news items from the past week in addition to scientiae carnival #7.

Bitch PhD points out the appalling case of Janet Conney, who was recently awarded $4 in a sex discrimination suit. At the time of the discrimination, Conney was an assistant clinical professor at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital. Not only was she paid less than male coworkers who were offered promotions she was told were not available, but "her UCLA department had a secret reserve of money that they used to supplement the salaries of male faculty members only." I guess they didn't want those poor men to work for a woman's pay.

The Baltimore Sun reports on the Hartford County (Maryland) Science and Math Academy, a public school magnet program. The school has nearly equal numbers of boys and girls, even though it doesn't have any special program to recruit girls.

"Now that opportunities in sciences have opened up for females, not only is it acceptable; now it's expected," said [16-year-old Michelle] Guignet. "If a guy can do sciences, why can't a girl?"

The High Plains Journal reports on the May 8 Women in Science Conference at the University of Wyoming. The conference held hands-on science projects for girls in grades 7 through 12. The next conference will be held on October 5, 2007 at Central Wyoming College in Riverton.

The Black Voice News Online reports on University of California President Robert Dynes campaign to save UC academic preparation programs from the budget ax. He visited San Gorgornio High School in San Bernardino, where 65% of the students participate in the free lunch program, and 73% continue their education after high school, in part thanks to the UC academic prep courses.

San G. senior Brittany Christopher, told Dynes UCR's Women in Mathematics and Science Conference helped shape her pathway to attend the Riverside campus as a biomedical sciences major.

"The conference was an eye opening experience. I now recognize the contributions of and need for more women in health and science and the importance of exposing young women like me to the unlimited possibilities. Hearing from so many accomplished women including our charismatic lecturer Dr. Clute, ignited my passion for biology and desire to become a medical doctor," said Christopher.

The Times of India reports on the increasing number of girls who pass the Indian Institute of Technology Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE). This has been a very long time coming:

The fact that girls have come a long way is evident when one looks at the data on student composition in the past. Back in 1972, of the 342 seats for the BTech course, IIT-Bombay had merely six girl students. In the intervening decades, the proportion remained more or less the same. In fact, even 30 years later, it had not more than 13 girls studying on its Powai campus. The change has come about in the last five years.

A major recent change made by Prime Minister Rao's National Task Force on Women in Science was to halve the JEE application price for girls.

Tags: women in science, gender gap, University of California, UCR, UCLA, University of Wyoming, Indian Institute of Technology, IIT-JEE