27/08/2018

The project "The Girl Who Calculated" is a finalist for the VEJA-se Award.

Lilah criou projeto inspirada em Emmy Noether (Pablo Saborido/Divulgação)

The project "The Girl Who Calculated" is one of the finalists for the VEJA-se Award, created last year to recognize the inspiring stories of exceptional citizens who stood out throughout the year as agents of change in Brazilian society. There are three finalists in each of the six categories – Education, Health, Diversity, Public Policies, Innovation, and Culture – chosen by the VEJA team based on nominations made by experts from all regions of Brazil. The selection criteria are the social impact, reach, and originality of the candidates' work. Soon, on the Veja website, it will be possible to participate in the popular vote, which will determine the winners, along with the opinion of a panel of notable figures. Check out the profile of the project "The Girl Who Calculated" below.

Reproduction from Veja

Reporting by: Maria Clara Vieira

Amalie Emmy Noether was born in 1882 into a Jewish family in the state of Bavaria, Germany. Passionate about numbers, at the age of 18 she decided to enroll in a mathematics program—which did not accept women. Thanks to the influence of her father, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, the young woman managed to gain admission and become the second woman in history to obtain a degree in the discipline. After graduating, she even adopted a male pseudonym in some of her work. Emmy would become one of the most renowned scientists of her time. Albert Einstein used her research to formulate part of the theory of relativity and considered her "the greatest mathematical genius since women gained access to higher education."

More than a century later, another student—this one studying physics—Lilah Fialho, 26, from Brasília, took a while to learn that the theories she was learning and admiring were the creation of a woman. “Almost all the authors in my course were men. I only realized it when a professor used the pronoun 'she' to refer to E. Noether,” she says. Since then, the German mathematician has become her greatest inspiration, first for teaching, then for creating, with fellow physicist Érica Oliveira, the project "The Girl Who Calculated," applied to all grade levels in public schools in the Federal District. The goal is to break down the “inferiority complex” girls have regarding the exact sciences.

Founded in 2017, free of charge and run by volunteers, the project offers tutoring in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. In three semesters, it has already served more than 300 students in fourteen schools, involving more than 100 tutors, generally undergraduate students in the exact sciences. Lilah stopped teaching and became the administrator of "The Girl Who Calculated." She is the one who receives applications from tutors and schools, promotes the initiative, and coordinates schedules. "Lilah is extremely organized, focused, and pragmatic. She also gets her hands dirty whenever necessary. I joke that I want to be like her when I grow up," praises Érica.

Principals and teachers at schools where the project is implemented say its effects are visible, both in the classroom and on report cards. Gabrielle Gomes, vice-principal of Escola Classe 407 in Asa Norte, Brasília, reports that when she enters the classroom to inform the enrolled students that the tutoring program is about to begin, she is greeted with great enthusiasm. "They are really enjoying the subject," she says. Ana Paula Prudente, a teacher of one of the participating classes, celebrates the results: "I notice that the girls feel special. They return to the classroom very motivated, and this is reflected in their grades."

The initiative's name, given by Lilah, comes from the book *The Man Who Counted*, by Malba Tahan, a classic children's book about a Persian calculator who presents problems and curiosities of mathematics. "It was one of the first books I read on the subject and it stuck with me because I didn't understand anything," says Lilah. Born and raised in the Federal District, she is the daughter of educators and took a while to embrace her vocation for the exact sciences. "When preparing for the university entrance exam, I chose physics because I wanted to deal with numbers related to nature. My teachers discouraged me, saying I wouldn't have a future," recalls Lilah, who is pursuing a doctorate in the subject and shows great pleasure in tackling almost unsolvable problems. "You know those huge calculations that are rarely needed in real life? I love them," she affirms.

Lilah has always felt the challenge of being a woman in a predominantly male field. When she entered college, there were eight girls in a class of thirty students. “I learned to overlook inappropriate jokes, in the name of good coexistence. Many times I was the only girl in the class, which is very uncomfortable,” she says. “I always trusted my abilities when it came to mathematics. But on several occasions I felt insecure demonstrating my calculations or solving problems in front of the class. A friend, in those moments, would have made all the difference,” she assesses. She herself has never suffered harassment, but says she has heard stories from several colleagues about problems of this kind. “An acquaintance almost gave up her doctorate because she was harassed by her advisor and didn't know who to turn to,” she recalls.

Although 60% of graduates in Brazil in 2015 were women, in courses related to exact and biological sciences (pharmacy, engineering, biology, mathematics, medicine, physics, chemistry, and computer science, among others) female participation does not exceed 41% — and the rate has remained unchanged since 2000. There is even research on female shyness regarding equations and numbers. One study, published in the journal Science, presented young girls with the phrase "someone I know is extremely intelligent and able to solve problems faster and better than everyone else." In the younger age group, up to 5 years old, the likelihood of associating the definition with a man or a woman was the same. From the age of 7 onwards, however, a 30% lower probability of associating such a "brilliant person" with a woman was detected.

The "The Girl Who Calculated" project, for Lilah, is a step towards changing this situation, giving girls confidence and encouraging their initiative from an early age. "It's gratifying to see the 'eureka' moment in their eyes when they arrive at the solution to a problem," she says. "Our goal isn't to convince the students to pursue careers in STEM fields. We mainly want them to feel confident enough to check and question their change at the bakery, for example." Along with the project volunteers, Lilah is now promoting an ambitious initiative: she is training girls for the Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad.