Maybe it's not something that institutions need to do but more of a
shift in the norms of society. The article mentioned male scientists
having the support of stay-at-home-wives - why can't females enjoying
the support of partner who stays at home to raise the children? Of
course that brings up the whole issue of being able to support a
family on one salary in the current economic climate and maybe even
whether or not females earn as much as their male counterparts but
it's a possible solution. At least an equal sharing in the
responsibilities, apart from the being pregnant aspect, should be an
expectation in our society so that females feel no more burden than
their husbands/partners in starting a family. Many of the couples I
know where both people have successful careers and are raising
children have worked out some system of sharing the load. Whether or
not the amounts to 8 hours of sleep though (but who really gets that
anyway?)...
Christie
Quoting Amanda Arner :
Sarah,
Though you make an excellent point, I think the article addresses a deeper
societal issue than overpopulation and losing women in science careers. 21st
century women often have to make a choice between career and family; those
that think they can do both jobs well often get little sleep and suffer
personally while making sacrifices for the greater good. I think there needs
to be a dynamic shift in the mindset of institutions that employ women in
academia. What is this shift? I have absolutely no idea. But as a woman in
my mid-20s who aspires to be a positive role model for my students, my peers
and my future children, I know that I simply cannot 'do it all', and this
idea of the 'super-woman' is not only exhausting, it's an unrealistic role
to play when mentoring younger generations of women and girls. Given my
opinions, I am still unwilling to give up the notion that I will have a
career in academia as well as a family. Hopefully, by the time I'm ready for
both, society will make it a little easier on me to achieve these lofty
goals (and I can still get 8 hours of sleep a night!).
~Amanda
On Tue, Sep 20, 2011 at 9:48 AM, Sarah Frias-Torres <
sfrias_tor...@hotmail.com> wrote:
David,thank you for sharing the link.
As subscribers to Ecolog are ecology oriented, perhaps we can read the
article thinking about the big picture. Mainly the 7 billion people in the
world. We have surpassed the carrying capacity of our planet. I strongly
suggest reading the latest work from James Lovelock on this issue.
Diminishing numbers of human offspring must be a cause for celebration not
regret. The true regret here is losing women in science careers.
Sarah Frias-Torres, Ph.D. Schmidt Ocean Institute Postdoctoral FellowOcean
Research & Conservation Association (ORCA) 1420 Seaway Drive, Fort Pierce,
Florida 34949 USA Tel (772) 467-1600http://www.teamorca.orghttp://
independent.academia.edu/SarahFriasTorres
Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2011 19:46:31 -0400
From: ino...@umd.edu
Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Fwd: [ADVANCE-NEWS] The Children they Never Had
To: >
>Hello All,
>
>You might find this piece (link below) at Inside Higher Ed
>interesting. It provides an overview of the first of a series of
>scholarly papers by Elaine Howard Ecklund (Rice) and Anne Lincoln
>(Southern Methodist) on women faculty members and their choices
>regarding children and career, careers outside of science, and other
>issues. It's worth a look.
>
><
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2011/08/09/female_science_faculty_much_more_likely_than_male_counterparts_to_wish_they_had_more_children
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2011/08/09/female_science_faculty_much_more_likely_than_male_counterparts_to_wish_they_had_more_children
>
For more information about the ADVANCE program at the University of
Maryland:
www.advance.umd.edu
--
Amanda Arner
Master's Student
Department of Biological Science
Texas Tech University
amanda.ar...@ttu.edu
(512) 550-0403
"Those that can, do. Those that understand, teach." ~Aristotle
