Less visible obstacles for women in STEM fields.
Reproduction from the IMPA Science & Mathematics blog, from O Globo, coordinated by Claudio Landim.
Bruna da Silva Magno , a master's student in mathematics at UFABC,
Carolina Araujo , researcher at IMPA
Marcia Barbosa is a professor at UFRGS and director of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences.
Natasha Felizi , director of science outreach at the Serrapilheira Institute.
Full professor Marcia Barbosa enters the seminar room at a physics event and, as always, she is the only woman. Thirty years after her doctorate, she should be used to it, but the gender disparity is like an old injury that bothers her on cold days.
The field of Exact Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Cetem) in Brazil has a percentage of women among undergraduate students around 30% [1]. Family and school are complicit in teaching that dexterity with tools and focus are masculine attributes, while sensitivity, care and cooperation are feminine qualities [2].
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Mathematician Carolina Araujo, the only female researcher on IMPA's permanent staff, also has painful memories of her journey as a woman at Cetem. She recalls an occasion when, still a recent PhD graduate, she was invited to give a lecture at a science and technology event. She was the only female speaker. She was having coffee with colleagues before the opening ceremony when the coordinator came to introduce an authority to the conference attendees.
Upon being introduced to Carolina, the very distinguished gentleman asked the coordinator if she was his wife. Faced with a negative response, and attempting to repair the awkwardness caused, the gentleman said that, had she been, he would have congratulated the coordinator on his good taste, offering Carolina a courteous smile.
Years later, at another scientific event to which she was invited as a speaker, the organizers would distribute gifts to the participants at the closing ceremony. The distribution would be done by young women from the support team. Carolina was invited to join them to help hand out the gifts to the participants, the vast majority of whom were men, stepping out of the role of invited scientist and assuming her place as a "woman".