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Sinister Female Conspiracy At Heart Of Major Scientific Society

PhysioProf

I was just checking out the program for the 2008 annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, one of the largest scientific societies in the world, with almost 30,000 members. I’m looking at the list of four Presidential Special Lecturers, and I notice something that indicates the existence of a sinister female conspiracy at the heart of the Society.


Here are the four Presidential Special Lecturers: Carol A. Barnes, PhD; Allison J. Doupe, MD PhD; Catherine G. Dulac, PhD; Leslie C. Griffith, MD PhD. And the President of the Society–who selects the Presidential Special Lecturers–is Eve Marder, PhD. They’re all fucking women!!

I don’t know about you, but this kind of looking-out-for-your-own-kind shit is a total fucking disgrace. It goes against the absolutely indisputable fact that science has always operated as a pure meritocracy, without any privilege or favoritism on the basis of shared personal characteristics. And god only knows how many better-qualified male neuroscientists were passed over so these women could enjoy the fruits of in-group nepotistic back-slapping.

I consider this egregious behavior a complete affront to all that science stands for!

26 thoughts on Sinister Female Conspiracy At Heart Of Major Scientific Society

  1. Pingback: Posted At Feministe: Sinister Female Conspiracy At Heart Of Major Scientific Society « PhysioProf

  2. I’m sure in an ideal world science always operated purely as a meritocracy, but it’s never actually worked that way. Nothing has. No matter what people say about people always being judged on their merits for whatever, it doesn’t work that way and never has.

  3. “They’re all fucking women”? How do you know they’re lesbians/bisexual?

    (Sorry, but I’m the guy who always says “I’d rather not, if it’s all the same to you”, when someone expresses surprise by saying “bugger me!” – so this is always my response whenever the word “fucking” appears 😉 )

  4. Are you kidding? How many times have 4 males presented at conferences? Maybe these were 4 talented women!

  7. So, PhysioProf, are you um, ‘comfortable’ with a woman for a boss in here?

    I’m sorry, EX boss in here . . . . 😉

    Such inVECtitudes!!! 😀

  8. YES!!!!!!!! Finally, we are beginning to take over the scientific world! It’s only a matter of time now before we RUIN SCIENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!11!!!!!!!!!!

    And it’s not easy for us women to Take Over and Ruin Science, you know, seeing as how our brains don’t operate all that well what with all the estrogen floating around our bloodstreams and so on. I’d like to explain the neuroscience of women’s inferiority to you better, but I’m a woman, so I can’t.

    PP, doesn’t anyone get sarcasm on teh internetz anymore???? I was laughing when I read you post and then was surprised at the first few comments. This is what makes me sad: that we are so used to having this kind of stuff shoved down our throats, from the likes of Harvard presidents no less, that anytime we hear it our defenses automatically go up. We can’t even imagine that someone is being sarcastic, because it’s too close to the truth of the shit we hear day in and day out.

  9. SfN is turning into a hack meeting and totally going to the dogs. First the Dolly Llama, now this? I mean, think of the quelling effect on bright young male scientists! The future of Neuroscience is in Danger!!!!!11111ELEVENTY!!111

  10. All kidding aside, I think it’s fucking great that Eve gave the four Presidential Special Lectures to four totally kick-ass women scientists.

    And on another topic, Eve is one of the most brilliant and creative scientists I have ever met. I am absolutely convinced that her scientific legacy will in the long run far outweigh that of a number of male neuroscientists who have enjoyed more glory, including Nobel Prizes. In fact, I am thinking of one particular Nobel Prize winner who worked on the nervous system of a different phylum of invertebrate than Eve, who works on crustaceans.

  11. I can easily picture the following lament from a few of my science-oriented male high school classmates:

    Once, we could take solace in the belief that despite our socially-awkward/maladjustedness and the lack of impressiveness of our physiques/external appearances that through our laser-like focus on our scientific studies and our “genius abilities”….we can at least achieve greatness in something noteworthy. Bad enough those gurls/wimmin won’t give us a second glance…much less date us in high school……now even our most promising route to achieving greatness is being taken away by those evil wimmin!!!!!

    With all these “underqualified” women taking over because of the “damned quotas”….what are we socially-awkward/maladjusted…physically unimpressive….super-focused “geniuses” supposed to do????

  12. Doing better, PhysioProf. That comment you just made was really nice to read. It was honest, direct, calm, and unsarcastic. Loved it. If you could take the tone you use in your posts at Drugmonkey and bring it here, readers would’ve been fans of your writing from the start.

    It’s really refreshing to hear guys in science stand up against sexism in the field. I was in science briefly, and for most science guys, sexism in the field is a non-starter. Females being brought is just another “social issue” until someone actually puts them in the shoes of a women doing science work. At least _Science Magazine_ and _Nature Journal_ are explicitly for the balancing of recognition when the issue is brought up (though they bring it up so rarely that it almost gets treated as “a social issue”). Still, they certainly could be doing more to fix that balance on their own turf, publishing-wise and all.

  13. I am in Colorado this week, at an annual conference of road engineers (mostly male).

    One of our presentations was given by a female state senator from CO. In speaking about her background, she mentioned that the state senate is now a female majority!

    I couldn’t help but think that the anti-feminist backlash we’re experiencing may be a chorus of whimpers from men who are desperately clinging to their unearned privilege, as women begin to shine in fields/professions that were once off-limits to them. It made me smile.

    I really hope that the arc of history DOES bend towards justice (paraphrase!).

  14. Wow, you are an incredibly clever and witty boy, PhysioProf.

    In all seriousness, the recent rash of guest bloggers seem to take their opportunities on Feministe as a license to rave madly. I’ve looked at most of their regular blogs and they don’t seem as psychotic there. So what gives? Are they just pushing the limits now that they’re reaching a wider audience? Should Feministe change its name to Feministe Republic for the summer? Because the level of discourse seems to be approaching Free Republic standards.

    In the past, I’d have no problem recommending this blog to my friends and colleagues but now I’m embarrassed to do so.

  15. And people say the leaky pipelines in science have nothing to do with role models… I attend the Committee for Women in Neuroscience Luncheon (where Eve Marder gave a very inspiring speech last year) and just seeing all these amazing women in our field and talking to them about how they did it is so important for younger women’s motivation and spirit.

    Thanks SFN!

  16. Bah, Sensible you’re quite the easily offended, ey?

    Now take a look at PP personal blog: http://physioprof.wordpress.com/

    It looks like he even toned down his writing a bit for this place.

    But of course, those mealy mouthing feminists, how could they act up like that and make one so uncomfortable. That’s just not acceptable.

    And comparing Feministe to a raving homophobic, xenophobic, conspiratorial, racist, militaristic and stupid site like Free Republic… well, I wouldn’t say that comparison is very… sensible, no?

  17. Doing better, PhysioProf. That comment you just made was really nice to read. It was honest, direct, calm, and unsarcastic. Loved it. If you could take the tone you use in your posts at Drugmonkey and bring it here, readers would’ve been fans of your writing from the start.

    Dude, what are you, some kind of fucking Siskel and Ebert of the blogosphere? In the “Teh Laydeez” thread, you posted a 1152-word comment that boils down to “blogging: yr doin it wrng”.

    I’m flattered that you’re willing to spend that kind of time and effort commenting on my posts, but how about some goddamn content. No one gives a flying fuck whether you approve of what I write, or how you think I should be doing it.

    If you wanna pull that shit, save yourself some time and just give a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. That’ll at least make it easier for people to scroll past.

  18. While reading the post, I thought you were sarcastically making a very bold point. I smiled at your fearlessness. Then I got the whole story from you comment “All kidding aside.” Or did I?

  19. Personally, I think we need to watch letting four women scientists all give a lecture together. If we’re not careful, they’ll begin cycling together and then the meeting will turn into a good ole Stitch and Bitch (an event where women get together and knit and gossip, for those of you with testes).

  20. Well, now that women are obviously taking over neuroscience,I look forward to it being reevaluated as one of the “soft” sciences, and pay and prestige falling accordingly.
    /snark

    Also, I haven’t read the other posts by physioprof yet, but WTF is up with all the criticism? How is this post different from the snarky feminism that we know and love at many places in the blogosphere?

  21. Wow, this is great to see, PP. Gee though, I rilly wish you’d calm down *barf*

    My misogynist ex bf is a neuroscientist ( I did neuroscience undergrad but have since drifted to immunology); this must be burning his beans *evil grin*.

    I know a number of totally kick-ass women in neuro–rock on!

    Oh, and what Zuska said:

    This is what makes me sad: that we are so used to having this kind of stuff shoved down our throats, from the likes of Harvard presidents no less, that anytime we hear it our defenses automatically go up. We can’t even imagine that someone is being sarcastic, because it’s too close to the truth of the shit we hear day in and day out.

    Repeated for high truth content.

  22. While we’re on the topic of tremendously accomplished women in science, let me put forth a colleague from my field, Dr Jennifer Pietenpol, director of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center. Jennifer was associate director when former director Ray DuBois headed further south to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Jennifer was then asked to serve as interim director at Vandy and after a national search it was decided that no one kicked greater ass than she. I don’t even think Dr Pietenpol is 50 yet. A totally awesome human being and mentor.

  23. “I am thinking of one particular Nobel Prize winner who worked on the nervous system of a different phylum of invertebrate than Eve, who works on crustaceans.”

    Gee, PhysioProf, who could that be? 😉

    About time we women were taking over neurosci!!! The great female conspiracy has been taking way too long for me! All those hours working late in the lab while carrying out the clandestine female agenda are finally paying off….

    PS My blog reading is starting to merge, being a regular reader of DrugMonkey and enjoying your comments on other science blogs.

  25. Love the sarcasm but am, unfortunately, pretty bad at it, so I leave it to others.
    🙂
    I personally know four of the five women involved and find them to be outstanding scientists – and the wink at a certain male neuroscientist made me chuckle 🙂
    Obviously, misogyny is a reality that has to be overcome and the current slate of talks is a clear sign that it appears to be working, at least in the neurosciences.
    On the other hand, if women are anything like all other humans (and not somehow innately resistant to male hubris, bigotry and arrogance), shouldn’t one expect the pendulum now to slowly swing the other way, or is that a) totally unrealistic because…, b) way too far in the future, c) a sign that men are finally getting what they’ve had coming for centuries, d) fucking right-wing bullshit con-fucking-spiracy theory?

  26. Ah…I took reading the whole comments posted for me to realize that PhysioProf’s original post was sarcastic. I did have some inkling that it was supposed to be a sarcastic post, but I’m never quite sure about sarcasm–I’m a very literal person (granted, this does make life rather more interesting).

    I have a great-great-aunt (her name escapes me right now–sorry!) who became a neurosurgeon in the early 20th century–what’s really cool about this was that she graduated from Cornell ^-^. Her father was a Head Surgeon of some University or Hospital, so she had a lot of help, but needless to say she was also quite a remarkable woman.

    So I haven’t got a problem with left-wing female conspiracies ^^

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