sacha chua :: living an awesome life

Girls have the geek gene, too, reports Jen Gerson of The Toronto Star. Read it and weep. Goodness gracious, someone *please* tell me that this is a satire article appearing in The Onion, not a serious article appearing in the I.D. section of a major newspaper.

The opening sentence starts the same way as most articles about women in technology, making us feel like an endangered species. (Crikey!) But then it gets worse, and worse, and worse. I feel like printing and framing it.

I.D. chatted with one of the key speakers, Dr. Telle Whitney, president of the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, about why young women are frightened by the prospect of joining a field dominated by intelligent men who have no idea how to please them.

The things I could say about this...

So, women and technology. Why do they need their own symposium?

Because we're afraid of cooties. Snark snark snark.

Do you think fewer women are getting involved in technology because they're not as interested in it, or are they just not smart enough?

Could you possibly have a more provoking question if you tried?

But tech companies, they paint their electronics pink. Shouldn't that draw women in?

Apparently you *can* have a more provoking question.

So pink is not the way to go, for attracting women?

I like frilly interfaces and flowers myself. NOT.

Should we bring more women in? Aren't there few enough jobs in technology that we need to bring women too, into it?

Completely missing the point!

But how is it that women can juggle making computers with making babies?

ARRRRGGGGGHHHH!!

But are the babies disruptive to the computers? How do you trust babies around all that sensitive equipment?

More than I'd trust a certain reporter, apparently.

The following segment is just... horrible.

• Q Is Anita Borg a real name?
• A Anita Borg was the founder of the Institute.
• Q Was that before Star Trek: The Next Generation, or after?
• A It was really her name.
• Q Bad luck.
• A She passed away a few years ago from brain cancer. She was a very dear friend of mine and I took over here a few years ago.
• Q Oh. I'm a terrible human being. Is that what you're saying?
• A No no, she used to have these big pictures of Borg all over her house. She was a Star Trek fan.

...

...

...

There are no words to explain how terrible the article is. It is downright irresponsible of the Toronto Star to publish something this insensitive and disrespectful, considering the pressures that are already on women in technology.

Should we cut Jen some slack just because she's a fourth-year Ryerson University journalism student, or the Toronto Star for giving its columnists free rein? At what point are journalism students supposed to gain common sense? Jen asked those questions, typed up the interview, and the Toronto Star published it. At what point was someone supposed to go, "Wait a minute, what is this article saying?"

ARGH! Read, blog, link, whatever: clueless journalist. Her e-mail address is jgerson@globeandmail.ca . Help her learn not to do that again.

On Technorati: women, cascon2006, cascon06, cascon, rant

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Tags: cascon, cascon06, cascon2006, rant, women by Sacha Chua
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Kristin talked about how, if you were stuck on something, there was often the assumption that it was because you were a woman instead of there actually being a problem. She shared her experience of taking courses and being afraid of asking "silly" questions until she eventually did, finding out that her male classmates had also been wondering the same thing. Self-confidence plays such a huge role...

On Technorati: socialtech, women

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Amber MacArthur took a break during the Social Tech Brewing panel to call attention to the sticker on my laptop and the pin on my backpack. The sticker on my laptop reads, "The geek shall inherit the earth." I got it from the Software Freedom Day leftovers from the Philippines. The pin reads, "No, you can't just explain it in the manual." I snagged that from Human Factors International at CHI 2006.

I love wearing quirky little things like that. It gives people a whatzit and invites them to talk to me. I've had random conversations with people because of the Tux penguin pin, for example.

Stuff like that helps me establish myself as a geek girl instead of just someone's significant other at tech events. I *really* should make a sticker that reads: "Emacs: More than just a text editor. It's a way of life!" Or "(I (think (in (LISP))))"

Hmm. There's a book about writing for bumper stickers. I should request it. Fortunately I don't have the budget or space for an inkjet printer, so I'm forced to find other ways to make these little jokes happen...

On Technorati: socialtech, geek, women

Tags: geek, socialtech, women by Sacha Chua
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Leesa Barnes asked us to reflect on the day(s) that we almost quit technology. She shared her experience in 2004 at the last full-time job she ever had. "Never again," she said.

She quit because her job had challenged her integrity. "For five years I worked at a technology company, working on a piece of software that was crap. And we all knew it. And we worked with our clients, with this piece of software, everyone fully knowing that it was a piece of crap. Yet we still had to implement it, put on a brave face, and once it went live... disappear."

Oftentimes, our work challenges our integrity. That's one of the barriers we face as women in technology. Not just crude jokes and administrative tasks, and everyday situations where our integrity is challenged. That's why Leesa considered quitting technology altogether.

Leesa also called attention to how horrible a job women do supporting each other. Five women in a team of 200, and they didn't even feel comfortable having lunch with each other for fear that their managers would misconstrue it.

She fell in love with technology again when she discovered podcasting, and has been passionate about it ever since. She's chosen not to focus on the negative stuff that she encounters in the industry, and instead has chosen to surround herself with positive experiences and individuals. That's her strategy, and it's worked really well so far.

Leesa ended her speech with a call to support each other and to look at solutions instead of just focusing on problems. And she's right: a positive outlook breeds positive outcomes!

On Technorati: socialtech, women

Tags: socialtech, women by Sacha Chua
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Hong Zhu shared some results of her research into the ways that women from non-traditional backgrounds enter the IT sector. Most of the women in the study had no children or had grown-up children. On average, women earned only 85% of the salary of men doing comparable work.

She spoke of the need to encourage more women to go into math- and science-intensive programs in education because women usually lack this background in high school and college, which makes it harder for them to get into IT.

Hong described a few of the challenges women deal with at work. Even among women who have prepared well, many of them don't feel comfortable in the "boys' club." Traditional IT men tend to compete to be "as incomprehensible as possible." Another challenge facing women and technology is the balance between family and work. If they get into a high-speed track, they can find it hard to keep that balance. Hong shared an interesting observation: women often find that the long hours aren't really necessary, but men enjoy lingering around the workplace. Women also struggle with different standards for success. While men are expected to be good providers, the modern woman is expected to be both a good careerwoman and a good wife.

She recommended more women-friendly curricula that provide stronger technical backgrounds and, more importantly, promote gender equity.

On Technorati: socialtech, women

Tags: socialtech, women by Sacha Chua
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