Science: It’s a girl thing! – Official teaser

So my scientist friends, how does this make you feel? (Spoiler alert: My reaction was WTF)

Another video in completely missing the point and misunderstanding the problem.

*sarcasm* Because you know like OMG like purple, pink, lip stick, and fashion photography solve all female problems.  Like clearly, the problem  with, like science was it wasn’t like pretty enough. We just need to make it feminine, with make up and cute colours.  What I totally need is some dude looking over me while I do the science in a hawt manner. I need to do the science while I dance in my heels. I mean wow “science”. Clearly my interest in this science has nothing to do with a fascination and curiosity in how the world works, but in aesthetics, fashion,  and how awesome I look. *** (opps used my big words there.)

Who is this ad geared for???

The ranty part where I speak very candidly:

I spent many an evening on my lawn with a telescope in my younger days. My science grades in High School were higher than my visual arts grade. Biology and Science and Society (how people perceive science and innovation) were my best grades, that and drama.  I failed every art history test (I never studied), aced the studio part, because my high school studio/art history class was, how to put it mildly… ‘put a gun in your mouth and blow out your brains’ boring. But here I am, an art historian, because art history is fascinating.

Though, I am a science fiction lover, which apparently makes me an un-girl. I have a crush on Neil deGrasse Tyson (who doesn’t?).  So, I’m not the person this ad is geared for and I will never be.

Hell, I would have gone into genetics if I didn’t have a crippling fear of going to work one day, fucking up because of laziness and/or arrogance, and  killing everyone.  Knowing me, it would be arrogance.

Family doctor would be a great job, because I love problem solving and hearing people’s stories about their illness. I am that person that asks “so what colour is the mucus that’s coming out of you? Clear? Probably allergies.” Please tell me more about your illness!!   Gory details please!! However, that aforementioned fear and my perfectionist* nature  makes that career unappealing because I would have a  nervous breakdown if I killed someone.

No one dies if I make an art historical  or game theory mistake. (Though the last season of Dexter begs to differ.)

I’m sure this ad is geared for someone, but it’s insulting and aims for the female stereotype. Like those skin cream and shampoo commercials that have harnessed the power of ‘science’. This ‘science’ I say using spirit fingers, because it’s not science, but ‘science’ the magical word that makes every brand super magical and clearly works!!

It would help the getting ‘women into something’ argument if the people that made these ads did this:

A) Hire women working in that field.

B) Ask women in that field to help make the ad.

C) Consult someone with a fine arts degree (visual arts, art history, etc) about how to market things without pissing people off.

D) Break culturally constructed gender stereotypes.

E) Show the audience what you can do with science. (go to the moon, unlock the human genome, cure illness etc. Creating make-up seems uninspired to me, it’s a money maker, but a bit bland.)

Much of this list can be used if you want to market towards other groups and other fields. Just replace women with the type of persons you want to hire and do your research. In fact, if you did a lot of research you could create an ad that would make science interesting to everyone.

My Suggestion: An ad with real female scientists talking about their work in an edgy way and then inter-cut with quick  shots of their work. Also, find females that can talk about science passionately. Passion sells. (The lady writing the equations in the ad was the most compelling part. I have no idea if the math was wrong, I’m an art historian not at mathematician. )

If you can’t be bothered to find this female scientist hire Nichelle Nichols, the actress that played Uhara on Star Trek, because she has done immense work in getting people interested in science. She’s interviewed by Neil deGrasse Tyson on Star Talk and talks specfically about encouraging people to go into the sciences.

We can do better. We can make ads that will make women more interested in science. All we need is to think about it, and not do it for the ‘hawtness’.

Irrelevant side thought on gearing things for ‘girls’:

It reminds me of shopping for different coloured controllers for my consoles. The ‘girl’ controllers happen to be colours like pink or purple, because that what girls want apparently.  The sad part is I adore Hot pink, but marketers always pick this baby puke pink. The kind of pink you’d buy a baby girl for her first teddy bear. I’m no baby.  I stick to black, because I’m certain that controller and console designers are more colour blind than I.  It’s one of the reasons I haven’t bothered with a new DS. Nintendo can’t seem to do better than electric blue.  Hasn’t anyone heard of bronze? Or dark green? Matte black? Orange? Gun Metal/smoke grey?  Buy a fucking colour wheel or hire visual arts grad, because you’d sell more if everything wasn’t so damn ugly.

*I write candid blog posts to try to remedy my perfectionism, since it tends to cripple my productivity. 

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Panem et Circenses

Re-blogging of articles that make me think, wonder, and worry.

Are Canada’s federal scientists being ‘muzzled’?

I had posted the BBC version of this article several weeks ago. It seems it took that long for Canadian reporters to catch wind of it.  Which makes me even more concerned. 

Resistance to antibiotics could bring “the end of modern medicine as we know it”, WHO claim

This story has been floating around since the late 1990s. I learned about antibiotic resistance while studying biology in high school. What my brain didn’t put together was that surgery may no longer be possible or considered minor without them. The  over use of antibiotics to cure colds as well as in food production will lead to changes in how health care will be handled. I am hoping that the difficult to use bacteriophages  may become a viable option.

Save the Internet from the US

(Admittedly, I am not familiar with the organization responsible for the petition. I suggest finding another site for your  home country. I am often weary of signing these petitions because it gives these people my information. I opt to write my members of parliament.)

 This type of law keeps floating around in various parts of the world. The idea that the government should be allow to monitor what you are looking at on the Internet. Part of it is often disguised as ‘good intentions’ to catch criminals, providing the argument that : ‘clearly since you aren’t a child molester you’d have nothing to hide.’ The other part is to catch pirates, which means often these laws are backed large corporations that don’t have your interests in mind, but their interest to make money off of you.  Either which way, no one should have the right to examine your search history without your permission. 

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Symphony of Science – the Quantum World!

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