Re: male-female student ratio mix ... more bad news

On 4/21/00 at 1:52 PM, [email protected] (Elaine -HFB- Ashton)
wrote:

> They make some good and valid points but it smacks of
> over-generalisation and cheerleading. Much the same as I
> feel about people telling women they can have it all and,
> in reality, it's a rare case. 
Clearly, many of the life choices women must make are more difficult
than those a man must make. But a woman can make the tougher choice, if
she favors a career in IT (or other male-dominated fields such as
business), over the easier choice of doing something not stereotypically
overrun with men. The choice is very hard, as the environment she pushes
herself into makes demands men don't see and appreciate. And to move
ahead in these environments, a woman must take on many male-attributed
patterns and tendencies (aggressiveness, for one). Of course, not too
much so for fear of being categorized as overly emotional.

I also suspect that women who chose to act on their conviction that they
have something unique to offer in IT or in any business have to spend
more energy, fight more battles, and engage in more self-examination
than men who work in IT or business do. We are at a stage of societal
evolution where women are much more aware of what and how changes must
take place to develop a gender-neutral, or mutually gender-respectful
environment in which all can contribute their intellectual and other
gifts. Men have to become actively aware of their role and the need for
their active participation in forming a work (and societal) environment
which allows gender-independent contribution to business and society.

Lots of work for both genders.





> They toss around a lot of ideals yet offer no plausible
> ways to effect these changes and make no acknowledgement
> of the current social atmosphere ...
Ok, so I'll continue:

> ... Next time you read through a technology magazine,
> count how many ads use women or eroticised images to sell
> software and other products...I think you'll be surprised
> by how many there are. 
Men must start seeing these ads as exploitive. Would you rather have
your daughter pose in these ads or using her brain? By staring at these
ads you send a message (to your growing-up daughter) that this is an
acceptable thing for a woman to be doing. Men must look at these ads and
say to themselves 'this is damaging to society (even though it's
pleasant to look at).'





> When social expectations of both genders start
> to change, so too will much of the demographics. 
Right on! Over time, hopefully, enough of us, both men and women, will
raise bright, mathematically-inclined (or other male stereotypically
attributed traits) daughters, like my daughter Olivia, and see the 'in
your face' necessity of carrying the torch of 'changing societal
attitudes.'

Neil R. Bauman, Captain
Geek Cruises, Inc. (www.GeekCruises.com)
1430 Parkinson Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301

650-327-3692; Fax: 520-396-2102; Cell phone: 215-519-0141