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SaraiLizama Ms.Rand English1103 11Nov,2013 Belesscuriousaboutpeopleandmorecuriousaboutideas MarieCurie

Bylookingintothepastandlookingintothestoriesandsituationsofthepeoplewhohavecome beforeuswecanhelpinspireourselvestopressonthroughtheobstaclesweencounter.Youngwomen insciencetodayfacemanyobstaclesasaminorityinmaledominatedfields.Theyfacemany stereotypes,onebeingthattheyarelesscapablethanmeninmath,theyfacetheirownideasabout intelligencebelievingthatmenareinnatelymoreintelligentwhiletheywerebornwithapredetermined intelligencethatlimitswhattheycanaccomplish,andtheimplicitbiasofasocietythatisslowlyshedding thelargeexplicitbiasbutstillholdingontounconsciousoneswithoutknowing.Letusnowconsider someonefromthepastwhocaninspireandhelpusmakesenseofourobstaclesandreflectonsolutions thatwillallowustosurpassthoseobstacles. MarieCurieisoneofthemostrecognizedwomenscientistsofthelastcentury.Shewasborn MarieSklodowskainWarsaw,PolandonNovember7th,1867(GrahamBagley).Bornintoan educationalfamilyherfatherwasaphysicsandmathprofessoratauniversityandhermotherwasthe directoratagirlsschool(GrahamBagley).Mariewasgivenaneducationuncommontogirlsatthe time.Withthehelpofherfathershelearnedphysicsandmathandgraduatedhighschoolatfifteen (GrahamBagley).Duetolackoffundsherparentscouldnotaffordtopayforhercontinuingeducation,

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butMarieandheroldersisterBroniaagreedtoworktogethertoraiseenoughmoneytopayforoneof themtoattendschoolinParissincePolanddidnotallowwomenintoUniversityatthetime(Graham Bagley).Theyagreedthatafterthefirstgraduatedandhadajobshewouldthenhelptheothergoto Paristopursuetheirstudies(GrahamBagley). MarieworkedasagovernesstoraisemoneyforhersistertoattendUniversityandforthe followingyearswhilehersisterwasatUniversity.WhileworkingasagovernessMariecontinuedto studyindependentlyandinacoupleofyearswhenhersisterhadsuccessfullybecomeamedicandwas readytofundhereducationMarietraveledtoPariswhereshewasadmittedtotheSorbonne(Graham Bagley). OneofonlyasmallnumberofwomenatSorbonneMariefacedgenderdiscriminationand antifemalesentiment,butthisdidnotdwarfherattemptsataneducationshegraduatedSorbonnewith adegreeinphysics(GrahamBagley). WhileinParisMariemetPierreCurie,a35yearoldinstructorofindustrialphysics,they marriedin1895(Graham).Workingtogethertheybeganresearchonradioactivity.Theirdiscoveryof twopreviouslyunknownelementsRadiumandPoloniumwonthemtheNobelPrizeinPhysicsin 1903(GrahamBagley).MarieandherhusbandcontinuedtheirresearchuntilPierresunfortunatedeath in1906(Nye).AfterhisdeathMariewasofferedhisteachingpositionandacceptedit,shecontinued theirworkinradiationandwithherworkonisolationofradiumandstudyofitspropertiesshewonher secondNobelPrizein1911(GrahamBagley).Shecontinuedtoadvancetheworldsknowledgeof xraysandradiationtreatmentuntilherdeathonJuly4th,1934. AlthoughhermanysuccessesinscienceMarieCuriefacedmanyobstacles.Shewasonlyone ofaverysmallnumberofwomenscientistatthetime.Manywomenseffortsataneducationinscience

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weredwarfedbypooreducationalopportunitiesforgirlsinsegregatedschools(Graham).LuckilyMarie wasbornintoafamilywhovaluedequaleducationforallitsmembers.MarieCuriesaccomplishments werealsobelittledandherworkinexperimentsmostlyattributedtoherhusband.Throughouthercareer shehadtoworkaroundalimitedbudgetalthoughshehadmadestridesinscienceshewasstill scrutinizedforbeingawomanandherlabwasnotfundedadequately.Shedealtwithbias,butchose nottodwellontheinjusticeofitallduringherlifetimeshewrotemanythingsdowninherjournals,she wroteaboutherstrugglesinschoolmostlyacademicbutneveracknowledgedthestrugglesshefaced asaminorityinamaledominateduniversityandfield(Graham).Shechosetofocusonthefutureandon whatshecoulddotocontinueonthepathshewanted,insteadofdirectlyconfrontingasystemshe knewwouldnotappreciateorrecognizeher. WomeninsciencetodayarefacedwithsomeofthesameobstaclesMarieCurieencountered. AlthoughtodayunlikeinMarieCurie'stimewomenarethemajorityonmanycampusesaround America(Lewin)womenarestillaminorityinscience,technology,engineering,andmath(STEM).29% ofcollegefreshmanplannedonmajoringinSTEMcomparedtoonly15%ofwomen,outofthe15%of women9.6%wereinterestedinbiology,2.5%inengineering,2.0%inphysicalsciences,0.6%in mathematicsandstatistics,and0.4%incomputerscience(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose).Somemaysaythat womendonotenterSTEMfieldsbecauseitdoesnotattracttheirattention,thatmaybesoforsome women,butthereareundeniablefactorsthatdeterwomenfromenteringfieldsthattheycouldbe interestedinifgiventhechance.Factorsthatdeterwomenarestereotypes,beliefsaboutintelligence, andimplicitbias(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose). Negativestereotypessuchasgirlsnotdoingaswellasboysinsubjectslikemathcontinue today.BelievingsuchstereotypescontributestolessfemalestudentstakingAPlevelcollegeandSTEM

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coursesinhighschool(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose).Girlsareawareofthestereotypethatsocietypromotes andinternallyonasubconsciouslevelthestereotypeaffectstheirperformance,throughwhatiscalled stereotypethreat(Vedantam).Stereotypethreatistheideathatalthoughboysandgirlsmayreceive thesametypeandqualityofeducationagroupwillperformworsethananothergroupifremindedofa negativestereotype.InthecaseofgirlandmathClaudeSteeleapsychologistfoundthatwhengirls wereawareofthestereotypeagainstthemtheirperformanceinmathtestsdecreasedascomparedto theboysperformance.Theirperformancewasreducedasaresultoffeelingthreatenedbythe stereotype(Vedantam).Itwasalsodiscoveredthatcontinuedexposuretothethreat,thestereotype leadstodisidentificationtheprocessoftryingtoavoidbeingjudgedbyastereotypebyavoidingthe situationinwhichthestereotypearises(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose).Throughdisidentificationmanygirls claimthattheyarejustnotinterestedinmathandeventrytoavoidmathandscienceinhighschooland college(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose).ItmaybethatgirlsareveryinterestedinmathandSTEMfields,butare heldbackthroughstereotypesthataffecthowtheyperformandinturnhowtheycomparethemselvesto boys.Butitispossibletostopstereotypethreatbysimplyacknowledgingthestereotypeandatthe sametimeexposinggirlstosuccessfulrolemodelsinordertodebunkthestereotypeasfalse(Hill, Corbett,St.Rose).ThiswillencouragegirlswhohaveaninterestinSTEMfieldstocontinuepursuing thosefieldswithconfidencebelievingthattheyareequallyascapableasmen. Girlscanalsostandtogainorloseduetotheirideasonintelligence.Therearetwoideasabout intelligencethatpeopletendtomaintain.Onethatyourebornwithacertainamountofintelligencethat islimitedwhichisreferredtoasthefixedmindsettheotherthatintelligenceismalleable,always growingandchangingthisisdescribedasgrowthmindset(Hill,Corbett,St.Rose).Dependingon whatmindsetanindividuallivesbyinfluenceshowtheyrespondtochallenges.Inexperimentsconducted

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byCarolDweckshefoundthatstudentswhoweretaughtthattheirbrainismalleableandthat knowledgecanbegainedthroughhardworkperformedbetterinschoolthanstudentswhowerenot taughtthegrowthmindset.Studentswithlimitedmindsetswereseentothinkofthemselvesasless intelligentandnotabletoovercomedifficultiesbecauseoftheirperceivedlimitedintellecttheyalso believedanyefforttheymadewasuselessandgaveupwheneverfacedwithdifficulties(Hill,Corbett, St.Rose).Studentswithagrowthmindsetdidntsetlimitationsforthemselvestheysawopportunityasa chancetogrowandtheyviewedeveryefforttheymakeaspreparationfortheirsuccess(Hill,Corbett, St.Rose).AgrowthmindsendisacrucialaspectofbeingsuccessfulinSTEMitpromotespersistence atdifficulttasksandagreaterchanceforachievement(Dweck).Themoregirlsandwomenbelievethat theycanbesuccessfulasaresultoftheireffortthegreaterthechanceswillbeoftheiractualsuccessso mindsetisaveryimportantfactorthatcaneitherlimitorenhancewomensskills. Anotherfactorthatlimitswomen'sprogressinSTEMareimplicitbias.Implicitbiasarisewhena personcontinuestojudgeothersbystereotypesunconsciously(Hayley).Someonemightpubliclyreject stereotypesbutmaycontinuetoholdbiaswithoutbeingawareofit.HarvardprofessorMahzarin Banajisresearchhasdemonstratedthatanimplicitbiasthatthemajorityofamericansholdisthe gendersciencebiaswherepeopleautomaticallyassociatesciencewithmalesandartswithfemale.Not onlyaresciencesperceivedtobepredominantlymasculine,womenwhoholdahighpositioninthe sciencesarejudgedinanegativelightduetotheirgender.Implicitbiashavemajoreffectsingender distributioninscientificfields.Womenbecomelesslikelytochosescientificfieldsbecausetheyalso believethemtobeinnatelymaleandnotfemale.Implicitbiasaredevelopedbyculturalnormsand reinforcedbyculturalnorms,butBanajipointsoutthatitisupthetheindividualsofsocietytodecide whethertomakethebiasassociationbetweengenderandscienceornot.Weasindividualshavethe

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abilitytostopbeingruledbyunconsciousbias.Infactitisnecessarytoinformyourselfaswellasother onimplicitbiassothateveryonebecomesbetterawareandlesslikelytousethem.Thiswillpromote moreacceptanceforwomeninSTEMandachangeofperceptionofwomeninhighpositions. InorderforawomantobesuccessfulinSTEMshemustbeawareofallthepitfallsthatsociety consciouslyandunconsciouslysetsupforher.Shemustknowthatthestereotypesarewrong,thatshe isworthfarmorethanastereotypeandthatsuchthingsdonothavethepowertodictatewhosheis.By beingawareofwhenandwheresocietyfailshershewillbebetterpreparedtostandwithconfidence andmorelikelytosucceedwhennooneexpectsherto.Womenwillfollowinthestepsofrolemodels likeMarieCurieandwillcontinuetotaketheirplaceinSTEM.Itmaybeagradualprocess,butwomen willsomedaybeadequatelyrepresentedinSTEM.Anditisforthebenefitoftheworldandscience thatitbethiswayinordertohaveadifferentperspectiveotherthanthemaleperspectiveandtohave morecreativeandintelligentmindsthatwillhelpsolvefutureproblems.Itisuptoeveryonetomove towardsgreaterequalityandawayfrombias.

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Reflection ThemostinterestinginformationIlearnwasalltheinformationIgatheredonMarieCurieslife. PriortothisprojectIdidnotknowanythingaboutherandafterthispaperIknowthebasicsofherlife storywhichIamgladtohavelearnedabout. ThebiggeststruggleIencounteredwhileworkingonthisprojectwastryingtoorganizeallthe informationIgatheredplustheadditionalhistoriccomponentandblendthemtogethersotheyworked together.Ialsohadtroubleformingathesisstatementfrommyinquiryquestion.Toovercomethese obstaclesIjustwrotethethesisstraightfromtheheart,Itriedtoconnectthehistoricalcomponenttothe researchthroughthethesis. Myinquirychanged,morphed,evolveditdidallsortsofthings.Atthebeginningitwasjusta broadideaofwhatIwantedtoresearch,IknewIwantedtolookintosomethingthatrelatedtomylife andsoIhadtheideaoflearningmoreaboutscienceandsuccessfulpeopleandthequalitiesthatmade thosepeoplesuccessful.AtthebeginningIalsowantedtoincorporateacompareandcontrastelement, butIthinkthatprovedtoomuch.ThroughoutmyfirstresearchIencounteredalotofarticleswhose subjectsrevolvedaroundgenderdiscriminationinscience,beingafemaleinscienceIfoundthisvery interestingandwantedtolearnmoreaboutdiscriminationandunderstandhowitcouldpossiblyaffect me.AndultimatelyIdidmostofmyresearchonthediscriminationthatwomenfaceinSTEMfieldsand thatiswhatIcenteredmyprojectaround. Thehistoricalaspectwasimportantinmyresearchinordertounderstandtheprogressionof eventsthathavehelpedshapethespecificsituationmyinquiryquestionisattemptingtolookinto.Atthe

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beginningIthoughtofwritingmypaperinadifferentwayusinginformationthatIanticipatedIwould find,butitturnedoutthattheinformationIwaslookingforwasdifficultandtooscatteredsothatit turnedouttobebetterformetogoinadifferentdirection. IbelievethattheinformationthatIlearnedthroughmyresearchwillhelpwithanalyticalskills.I didntencounteraspecificlistwithdetailedstepsonhowtoimproveanalyticalskills,butIbelievethat thelargerideassuchasbeingconfidentinyourabilitiesandthoughtaswellasbeingawareof stereotypesthatmaylimitspecificskillswillhelpmeimproveinmanyareasnotjustanalyticalskills. FromthisprojectItakeawayknowledgethatIdidnthavebefore,thebackgroundofideasId heardbefore,butdidnotknowwheretheyoriginated.Thisprojectconnectedalotofdotsformeand allowedmetoseetheinformationIwaslearningaboutinthecontextashowitrelatedtotheworld.I gottoseehowgenderdiscriminationtodayisaversionofthediscriminationsofthepastandthrough readingarticlesandalltheextrainformationthatcomesfromthat,thatdidnotgointomyprojectIwas abletoformatimelineinmyheadoftheprogressionoftheeventsIlearnedabout. WhatmoreIwouldliketolearnthroughthisprojectishowtheinformationIfoundrelatestothe universitycampusIbelongto.IdliketoknowifouruniversitiesSTEMdepartmentsconsideritatop prioritytoattractandmaintainfemalestudents.Asafirstyearfemalestudentinthechemistry departmentIhavenotbeenexposedtodiscriminationmylecturesandlabsseemtobedividedequally amongmalesandfemales.ThiscouldbeduetothefactthatthefirstyearchemistryImcurrentlytaking isoftenaprerequisiteformanyothermajorsandsothenumbersIseeinmyclassdonotrepresentthe chemistrydepartmentasawhole.AndsoIwouldliketolearnmoreabouttheatmosphereandidealsof ouruniversity'schemistrydepartmentasIcontinuemystudieshere.

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WorkCited

Bagley,Mary.MarieCurie:Facts&Biography.LiveScience(2013).Google.10 Nov.2013<http://www.livescience.com/38907mariecuriefactsbiography.html>

Corbette,Christianne,AndresseSt.Rose,andDr.CatherineHill."WhySoFew?WomeninScience, Technology,Engineering,andMathematics."AAUW.org.AAUW,Feb.2010.Web.9Nov. 2013. <http://www.aauw.org/resource/whysofewwomeninsciencetechnologyengineeringandm athematics/>.

Dweck,CarolS."MindsetsandMath/ScienceAchievement."TheOpportunityEquation.Stanford University,2008.Web.11Nov.2013. <http://opportunityequation.org/teachingandleadership/mindsetsmathscienceachievement>.

Graham,Thomas.MarieCurie.WomeninEuropeanHistory(2009).Google.10Nov. 2013<http://womenineuropeanhistory.org/index.php?title=Marie_Curie>

Lewin,Tamar."AtColleges,WomenAreLeavingMenintheDust."TheNewYorkTimes.TheNew YorkTimes,09July2006.Web.10Nov.2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/education/09college.html?_r=0>. Nye,MaryJo.TheInnerMarieCurieAmericanScientist(2005).Google.10Nov.

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2013<http://womenineuropeanhistory.org/index.php?title=Marie_Curie>

Roberts,Hayley."ImplicitBiasandSocialJustice."OpenSocietyFoundations(OSF).OpenSociety Foundation,18Dec.2011.Web.11Nov.2013. <http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/implicitbiasandsocialjustice>.

Vedantam,Shankar."HowStereotypesCanDriveWomenToQuitScience."Newsgroup.NPR.N.p., 12July2012.Web.10Nov.2013. <http://www.wbur.org/npr/156664337/stereotypethreatwhywomenquitsciencejobs>.