Stereotypes in the Fields of Science

In science, we must be interested in things, not in person." - Marie Curie

I remember that all my science teachers who I had from elementary school to high school were men. Though I did not wonder anything about my male teachers at that time, now I feel so strange about why there were no female science teachers in my schools as I look back on my school years. In my second year of the middle school, in addition, all students could concentrate on either any scientific majors or English. The first day of my science class, I noticed that 90% of students who took the class were boys. I was wondering where the other girls went. I liked science and wanted to study it more. However, I started feeling uncomfortable in the class. I felt that I was isolated from the boys' dominating class and it was uncomfortable for me. I could not fit myself into the class at last and I quit taking the class.

When I saw this video, I was sad because the man in the video took away the girl's curiosity about nature. "Honey, you don't wanna mess with that. Put them down." In the video, when the man said this to the little girl who was picking up a starfish, her face looked confused. "Why?" It is true that when girls start showing their interests in science, people around them automatically try to channel their attention away from it. Although there are physical differences between men and women by nature, they acquire the perception of gender differences as they grow up. Scientists show that boys and girls are raised differently from an early age by their parents. The difference of gender is set in children's minds as they learned from the world around them. In the video, how would it change if the girl were a boy? Girls are often separated from the scientific fields. Science is considered as the men's field because people think that women are not equally smart enough as much as men in science. A physical distinction among a gender cannot be changed, but it does not mean that women cannot excel in the fields of science. The stereotype is a misleading belief and there is no reason why more women shouldn't be in the scientific fields.

According to Verizon, “66% of 4th grade girls say they like science and math. But only 18% of all college engineering majors are female.” In school, most students who major in science, math and technology are boys. No matter how much girls like these majors, many of them try not to go further and stop paying attention to the scientific fields. Even school counselors try to draw girls attention away from science. Why? It is risky for females.

It is obvious that the social progress of women has been stimulated remarkably in recent years, and a lot of women succeed in different kinds of areas, but not in the scientific fields yet. The lack of women has been a deep rooted issue in technology. It is a fact that 75% of workers are men in technology according to the article, Technology's man Problem. Science, math and technology... all this stuff are still considered the fields for men. Women are easily isolated from the fields as if they are not good at dealing with science by nature. It brings less women to pursue scientific jobs and makes it harder for them to succeed in these fields. These stereotypes created a men's world in technology.

It is open for women to get a job in the scientific field, but they do not try to take the opportunity. If they do, there are drawbacks. In the article, Elissa Shevinsky who worked at Glimpse went through sexism. She could not enjoy working in the tech men's world anymore, and she felt that sexism in the scientific fields would never end. She says in the article, "I thought that we didn't need more women in tech. I was wrong." Not only her but also almost all women in tech feel that they are marginalized in these men's dominated fields. Miller, the author of the article, says, "A culprit, many people in the field say, is a sexiest, alpha-male culture that can make women and other people who don't fit the mold feel unwelcome, demeaned or even endangered." There are women workers who suffer from harsh treatment such as sexual harassment and rape just because they are women in the tech world. In the scientific worlds, women should take many risks for it just because of the gender differences. 

Miller says, "Tech executives often fault schools, parents or society in general for failing to encourage girls to pursue computer science." This would be true, but now schools are changing the reality of less women in scientific majors. One college coped with the problem and found the solution; according to How one college went from 10% female computer-science majors to 40%. In 2006, there were only 10% of women who majored in computer science at Harvey Mudd College in California. What they did first was to change the title of the course, "Introduction to programming in Java" into "Creative approaches to problem solving in science and engineering using Python" so that it can be more familiar to students. The second step was taking female students to a technology conference, which praises women in technology, so that female students can picture themselves in the field. The other step was to give them more opportunities, such as a summer research program to cultivate their desire to learn their majors. As a result, the number of women whose major is computer science has increased from 10% to 40%. This can be applied for other schools. If they do so, more and more girls can take a chance to go through scientific majors, and they can know that such sexism does not exist in the scientific fields at all. That would be the great beginning for women to turn their eyes towards the scientific fields.

My friend, who is studying Environmental Science in San Jose State University, told me that she saw only a few female students in the scientific major. In her high school and university, she said that the ratio of males and females who majored in science was one to ten at best. She loved science and her teacher took care of few females students, so she still has been studying her major since then. She said, "I was one of the few female students who took science with many boys, but I've never felt that there was any difference between other boys and myself in my science class. My parents always encouraged me to study hard, and honestly, I've never been defeated by boys in my class. I was always at the top of my class." I could not feel the same as she did in her science class. There was nobody to encourage me to continue to study science. My class gave me such a negative impression but her experience is totally different. She had somebody to back her up and that helped her to visualize a positive impression in the scientific fields.  

The door leading to the scientific fields is open for females. There is no way to say that women cannot excel in the fields of science. If you take a look back, history has already proved such a belief is irrational. Marie Curie, a physicist and chemist, is the first and only women who received Nobel Prizes in both Physics and Chemistry and the first woman who became a professor at the University of Paris. She can show us that women are as talented as men and there is no doubt that the misconceptions for women in science do not make sense at all. As Verizon says in the video, "Our words can have a huge impact," people do not have to hesitate to encourage girls around them to pursue science and not give up. One's voice can easily change this issue positively. Forget about stereotypes. So women, you can do it!

Links and Resources

Technology's Man Problem:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/06/technology/technologys-man-problem.html?smid=tw-share

How one college went from 10% female comuputer-science majors to 40%:

http://qz.com/192071/how-one-college-went-from-10-female-computer-science-majors-to-40/

Using Women in Video Games and Ads is not Provocative

I don't talk about this often in public and much less on the internet, but nowadays women are seen as things for use. No matter whether it's in a certain video game or advertisements women are often used as objects to attract the audience attention.
                

Video games such as Grand Theft Auto V are major examples that lead to violence against women. Personally, I'm not a big fan of violence under any circumstances and a video game is not an exception. I've played the game couple times and I've come to terms that this game has great graphics and storyline. On the other hand, what made Grand Theft Auto V seem like a bad game was not only its extremely language and outrageous violence but also its content of certain sexual sections throughout the game such as strip clubs. Women in the video game are portrayed as strippers or prostitutes to pick up. The storyline consist of three main characters that are males and there's no females. The women seem to be just an eye candy add up to the video game. No wonder why the term "Sex sells" is used constantly; any sexual-situation related is a well-known efficient way to improve a product's sales. Guinness World Records can confirm that up-to-date Grand Theft Auto has broken six world records including "Best-selling video game in 24 hours" and " Fastest video game to gross $1 billion". In my opinion, Grand Theft Auto V was one of most controversial game last year.




Is there a chance that Grand Theft Auto V has a problem with women? Yes. Regardless of what Rockstar's Dan Houser said in not having a female as a main character "The concept of being masculine was so key to this story. These three guys fit with the story we wanted to tell. It would be hard to take one of them and replace him - I mean, I suppose we could have done it, early enough on - with a female character." I'm torn about all of this. I understand the fact that it was a story they wanted to tell but just maybe it's about time there's a female as a main character instead of being nothing more than a prostitute. Who are the targets in this game then? Women? I think they are and still will be upon Grand Theft Auto producers until they decide to make any changes.

              

                   


Thus far women are not only humiliated in certain video games, but in advertisements too. Advertisements like these are a perfect example of how women are portrayed as an object. I shop at American Apparel quite often. In fact, I was there last week to buy a Casio watch. I've always noticed that explicit ads like the one above are not shown inside the store; I wonder why? Personally, I think there's no need to have shocking ads because most of their clothing are already appealing.


With this in mind, American Apparel ads are well-known for being sexually explicit. The use of nudity seems to be an advantage to sell their overpriced and colorful clothing. Dov Charney, one of the most controversial and entrepreneur in this country founded American Apparel when he was 20 in 1989. Back in 2012 Dov Charney welcomed ABC'S Nightline for an interview at an American Apparel factory in downtown Los Angeles. During the interview Charney stated that ""We weave, we buy it, this is pure America. I love this business. ... I love the texture of clothes. I like when something fits well. I get an adrenaline rush watching the trucks come and go". Not only the way Dov Charney do busniess have brought him populatity; but the way he advertises them too. Dov Charney insist that American Apparel is "different than their competitors because their models aren't wearing pounds of make-up. It's the natural beauty". Natural beauty over pounds of make-up? I acknowledge the fact about how Dov Charney wanted to show the natural beauty, but isn't that quite exaggerating. Is it necessary for companies to show a picture of a woman being portrayed as an object? If its for sales and profit, absolutely. American Apparel makes about $500 million in annual revenue; something other clothing lines are having trouble to achieve. It seems that American Apparel's main concerned is to just sell and make big profits not showing a little bit of awareness whether their models look as an object, or most specific, as a "thing".

On July 24, 2014, it was announced that American Apparel had a new board that will take effect starting August 2. Dov Charney is no longer part of it. He was dismissed from the board for allegedly sexual harassment accusations and criticism over provocative advertising. What will happen now? Will the new board pull back their aggressive and explicit advertisements? I don't know about that but I certainly know that changes don't happen overnight, it takes time. A fresh start doesn't seem so bad after all.

Customers should be aware of the fact that the kind of advertisements and tactics in certain video games and ads are just being used to objectify and humiliate women. It seems that regardless of the situation, whether is to sell or show, women are most likely to be the one being getting objectified.



Bibliography:

Hoggins, Tom. "Grand Theft Auto V Is Designed Deliberately to Degrade Women." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 04 Oct. 2013. Web. 27 July 2014.

Lynch, Kevin. "Confirmed: Grand Theft Auto 5 Breaks 6 Sales World Records." Guinness World Records. N.p., 8 Oct. 2013. Web. 25 July 2014.


Millman, Jenna, Sabina Ghebremedhin, and Lauren Effron. "American Apparel CEO Dov Charney: A Tarnished Hero?" ABC News. ABC News Network, 27 Apr. 2012. Web. 25 July 2014.

Murray, Rheana. "How American Apparel Will Be Different Without Dov Charney." ABC News. ABC News Network, 19 June 2014. Web. 28 July 2014.

Plank, Elizabeth. "Dear Advertisers, There's Nothing Sexy About Violence Against Women." Mic. N.p., 26 Nov. 2013. Web. 24 July 2014.

Stampler, Laura. "The 10 Most Controversial American Apparel Ads." Time. Time, 19 June 2014. Web. 25 July 2014.

Advertising and Gaming: Equality is Subjective

Video games have made a lot of progress in the last few decades. 8-bit and side scrolling have evolved in to huge open world adventures. This large amount of progress in a short amount of time, however, has left the gaming industry with a lot of flaws it still needs to address. Gender inequality in gaming has gained some notice thanks to the work of advocates such as Anita Sarkeesian, but there still remains a lot to be done. Even though game designers have implemented in-game features such as character customization to break away from stereotypes, they can still reinforce assigned gender roles through their advertising.

In one particular kind of game, the role playing game (Rpg), players take on the role of a specific made up character, and attempt to overcome the challenges facing said character. In older Rpgs, players would make progress by completing challenges one by one to progress through the game. By unlocking parts of the game at a time, game designers kept the games as linear and simple as possible. However, with computers able to handle larger amounts of data, non-linear story telling and player choice have become integral parts of the genre. Examples of player choice such as character customization and in game decision making actively change the course of the game and allow the player more control. 

Male Commander Shepard

For example, Mass Effect III is an Rpg that allows for both male and female character options and allows player choice to alter the course of the game. The playable character has both a male and female version with their story lines being almost identical. The only difference between the two are the romance options available to each. Despite making all of the content accessible to both female and male characters, Mass Effect developers Bioware inadvertently alienated their female audience. In Sarkeesian's video “Ms. Male Character – Tropes vs Women”,http://www.feministfrequency.com/2013/11/ms-male-character-tropes-vs-women/, she examines the male and female versions of Mass Effect's hero, Commander Shepard. Although equal in the game, Bioware used the male version of Commander Shepard almost exclusively for advertisements and promotions of the game. By portraying the male Shepard in all their advertisements, Bioware made the male the standard version with the female as an alternative. All of the work to give the player control over the game is lost when the company tells the players which character is the more correct one. Women are not secondary to men, and moreover it should be up to the player to chose a character rather than for Bioware to dictate one. There is nothing wrong with playing male Shepard, but the tall guy with the buzz cut is exactly what people think of when they hear the word soldier. Through their advertising, Bioware implied that women should not be in, or are not as good at, military combat. It is spit in the face to have a female soldier character that does not receive the same recognition as the male simply because she does not fit in people's schema of "solider". While Bioware did go a long way to make this game equal, its advertising fell short and forced a stereotype upon its players.

Final Box Art

Much like Mass Effect, survival Rpg The Last of Us ran into similar problems with its advertising. When planning the 2013 game, Naughty Dog gaming hit a snag with its proposed front cover art. The cover featured characters Joel and Ellie making their way through post apocalyptic America together. The difference between them is that Ellie had to fight for her place on the cover while Joel did not. Originally, the front was to feature both characters, but the game's marketing department thought it would be better to push Ellie to the back cover. In an interview with VG247, Ellie's voice actor Ashely Johnson, Johnson claimed “[Gaming companies] don't put women on the covers because they're afraid that it won't sell” (Cook). Johnson was in part right. The marketing at Naughty Dog made the same assumption, as many other developers in the industry, that female characters don't attract as large an audience as male ones. While it is true that games featuring non-sexualized women on their box art have sold less than those featuring men, the sales data is not conclusive. A game's sales reflects all of its parts not just one, and so to attribute bad sales to box art without taking plot, graphics, and character development into account would be confusing correlation and causation. The games revised cover art would make the game look like just another shooter on the shelves, and be an insult to Ellie and other women. The game is about survival in a post-apocalyptic world. In the game, falling behind means certainly dying, yet pushing Ellie behind Joel on the art is somehow appropriate. The alternate art makes Ellie's part in the game less important, and it implies that a woman could not handle herself as well as a man could in the same situation. Luckily the employees at Naughty Dog recognized that changing their artwork would make their game look like just another shooter and marginalize a portion of their audience. In choosing the original art, designers supported their story and maintained neutrality.

Eliminating gender roles from gaming is a hard task. Even when game developers make an effort towards equality, it is rarely enough. In addition to their games, designers must also be weary of their advertising and all extra game content. Everything that the developers release is up to public scrutiny and so they must be extra cautious. With the lines between what is sexist and what is not being so difficult to determine, it can be hard to imagine a truly gender equal industry. Despite this, game developers are thinking of new ways to open their games up to all people. The new era of gaming looks promising with customizable characters and interactive stories, but there is still progress to be made.

Bioware. "Mass Effect III." Mass Effect Wiki. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014.
<http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Mass_Effect_3>. Used for Image

Cook, Dave. "The Last of Us: Acting out the End of the World." VG247. N.p., n.d.
Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.vg247.com/2012/12/12/
the-last-of-us-acting-out-the-end-of-the-world/>.

Gameranx. N.p., 13 Dec. 2012. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.gameranx.com/
features/id/11436/article/
how-to-win-customers-and-alienate-women-on-videogame-box-art/>.

Naughty Dog. "The Last of Us." Wallpapers Wide. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014.
<http://wallpaperswide.com/the_last_of_us_6-wallpapers.html>. Used for Image

Sarkeesian, Anita, prod. "Ms. Male Character – Tropes vs Women." Feminist
Frequency. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014.
<http://www.feministfrequency.com/2013/11/
ms-male-character-tropes-vs-women/>.

Do They Really Not See It?

As advertisements continue to use the image of women to promote their products, feminist or also known as genderist to some, continue to urge equality between the sexes in all settings.





"OOOOH IT'S A FEMALE!" This is what one team member stated when he noticed he was playing against Jenny Haniver's team on Call of Duty: Ghost Protocol. As I was reading through this blog post, I could not believe someone can actually point out something so ridiculous. Yes, it is a girl. Yes, there are other guys in the lobby as well so why does it matter that there is a "female" gamer? One of the other gamers on the same team later noted "I just knew you'd point out that there's a chick in the lobby, and now ChubbyBunny's going to be all awkward." Why will the guy feel awkward? I curiously started to read the other blog posts by Jenny Haniver and began to see a pattern.

I saw many sexual and sexists comments coming from guy gamers. While Jenny was talking to one of the players on her team about the match they had recently played, one of the male gamers randomly stated, "Wow, you sound hot, babe." This was only one of the many comments male gamers were stating while playing with Jenny. Others stated more vulgar statements which referred to Jenny as a whore, bitch, slut, and other derogatory words. All this lead me to ask myself one question: why do male gamers feel "awkward" or react differently when playing with female gamers?

Microsoft recently showed a commercial promoting there new Windows "All in One" which portrays three women interacting around a tablet. Later the main women states that the tablet "is more affordable, looks great, and is perfect for planning my wedding." At first look, this advertisement seems to be just an average commercial from a corporation trying to show why their product is more efficient. Although Microsoft's main idea of the commercial focuses on the product itself, portraying women as barely capable of checking their social media is unfair. In fact, when looking at a similar ad Microsoft posted using a man, you can see a huge difference in how Microsoft portrayed the male character.

In the ad, the man takes a business-like position.  Microsoft portrays him as a busy, hardworking individual that needs a portable tablet to help him finish up with work. The interesting part of this is when Microsoft shows how these men can casually use there tablets for fun when he's not focused and hardworking.

In the video, the male narrator said can check out Xbox videos or browse through the flipboard application. Could it be that Microsoft used these examples to show that men are associated with video games? Was Microsoft trying to show that men are intelligent by associating them with a cite that allows people to share articles, and blogs?

We don't see blatant sexist advertisements such as the one listed on the right of Del Monte's ketchup ad, but companies like Microsoft continue to ignorantly and carelessly promote their products to women. Microsoft promotes the idea that most women will use technology to do things like "plan a wedding" or "check Pinterest".  Yes, women do go on Pinterest and plan weddings but let me note that men can and do both things listed in this commercial. In fact a study done by Mintel back in 2013 found that 19 percent of men were mostly responsible or involved in choosing the wedding dress.

I am not trying to say that Microsoft is the only company portraying women in a negative way, but they are not first time offenders. Back in November 2013 they posted an alterable letter of a husband stating why the Xbox One would be great for both him and his wife. This letter could be edited and shared with others via social networking and what sparked controversy was how the default setting of one the sentences was "I know, I know. You'd rather knit than watch me slay zombies, but hear me out on this." Again this shows Microsoft's ignorant views, but in there defense, Microsoft later apologized and quickly worked to change the sentence from "You'd rater knit" to "You'd rather do your taxes early." I guess it was nice that they at least apologized and changed their ad to something more appealing to everyone. Now when I read the default letter instead of seeing that women would rather knit, I see that they can and would rather do math

After seeing these advertisements I immediately asked myself what can cause people, especially in big companies, to have these views and openly share them as if no one will get offended. I started by looking into who were the people in charge of the company and how many of them were women. An article posted by huffington post listed that out of nine of the board members, only two were women. This can definitely skew the views of those portrayed in the commercial. Recently Twitter posted data that shows that 30 percent of employees are women. Out of the 30 percent only 10 percent are involved in a tech job.

All these numbers suggest that we need to work on increasing and balancing women involved in the tech industry. Studies show that women are more than capable of being in these leading positions. In some cases, women have proven to show better results than men. Women entrepreneurs who began with 12 percent the funding of male counterparts in return have shown to make 12 percent higher in revenue.

Women are no stranger to technology so why do companies like Microsoft continue to completely ignore how involved women are in technology? Do they really need to relate to women as confused wives that need technology to help them plan a wedding. 41 percent of computer science majors in Harvard are women and women such as Jenny Haniver are involved with technology in ways that do not involve planning a wedding or going on social media. There needs to be more women in leadership roles in tech jobs. Women have done more than enough to prove that they have the ability to do what men can do. I understand it's a process so I suppose I can start by suggesting this to Microsoft and other companies who demean women's abilities: please post more accurate portrayal of women. Post advertisements that exemplify women as capable and intelligent individuals. People should not have the idea that women shouldn't be involved in places men are involved. As Jenny Haniver shows in her blog, Not in the Kitchen Anymore, women can be part of the same areas men are involved if only people can change their views and learn to welcome everyone, including women. Don't label women as others that shouldn't belong.
         

That is "Della" Sexist

So, all girls like pastel colors and all boys like bold colors, right? No, that is not entirely true. When I look at the details in advertisements more closely, I notice that most of them are sexist attempts to market the items to a particular group of people. Sexist advertisements towards women are becoming more popular and problematic making women outraged by how they are being portrayed. How, I wonder, do advertisements attract women in that way then?

I came across an ad Dell made to advertise their laptops. It is a site called “Della” that uses pastel colors and shows how Dell products come in different colors and skins to match customers’ preferences. This is a sexist advertisement made by Dell to market their products to women. On the website, it includes tips for women on how to use the Dell, but also using it fashionably and conveniently. Even though Dell’s main focus is to sell their laptops, the way they marketed to women makes it seem like the company thinks women have different gender abilities and preferences than men by portraying women to be incapable of using technology, and to only think about being stylish.

Some can say that “Della” is a cute and creative way to sell the products, but I think it is demeaning women because unlike men, it shows that women are stupid since they cannot function a laptop. “Della’s strategy sought to introduce tech as a fashion statement for on-the-go women” (Casserly). Della provides features like colorful and pretty cases and bags for the laptop, and other useful tools that Dell thinks women would need, like counting calories. I agree with Casserly's blog response to the website because Dell is implying that women only use a laptop as an accessory or for health reasons by only showcasing the fashionable side of the product. Dell should instead include features telling their customers about what the product has to offer compared to other competing models, like battery life and storage capacity. They also do not show their awareness of how many other women use their computers for work. For example, I do not use my laptop to calculate how many calories I burn or eat in a day but instead, I use it to research and do school related work. I find it offensive that Dell thinks that girls like me are not able to use computers like how guys would. Is Dell trying to say that men are smarter with technology compared to women? Dell is saying that women are not important as men in the social world because Dell suggests that men work more while women just sit at home and care about fashion and looks.

Even though women are considered to be less involved in technology than men, it does not mean they are incapable of doing the same tasks, like how many assumptions are made. Women are constantly being judged when or by the way they use technology. According to one of Ashley Milne-Tyte's blog post, "women face a different judgment from the audience than men do" which reveals the fact that women are annoyed that they are being viewed dumber than men. Della's advertisement lines on their website proves that they believe their customers, who are women, need a very simple product with easy instructions to work their product since they cannot figure it out by themselves. By creating this entire website for women, Dell is putting women on the spot and indicating that they know men are smarter and know how to work laptops. But really, they are just judgments about women and technology.  

The Della website tailors to women in way that the site is in pastel colors, and gives an impression that they know what women like, thus, showing how Dell thinks women have a gender preference different from men. Della is categorizing women in such a way that they define women as people who are easy to give in when they see something "cute". Dell is simply "reinforc[ing] a strict binary form of gender expression"(Sarkeesian) by using pastel colors to lure in women customers. Anita Sarkeesian explains in her video about the color of female characters in video games that men and women are labeled separately. Relating to Sarkeesian's statement, Dell is being sexist because they are dividing men and women into two different viewpoints, assuming that women like pastel colors and men do not. Dell fails to realize they are identifying women with a certain idea in mind and are judging that all and only women are feminine. Dell could have mentioned on the website the preferences that both men and women can work with or like. I do not understand why pastel colors are automatically associated with women. Pastel colors are always considered soft and very likable whether it is liked by a boy or a girl. When I go with my dad to the stationary organizer section in stores, I notice that he would take a long time picking what pastel color box or container to purchase. Pastel color should not be an identifier for women. Being a woman does not mean that they have to like or act differently from men.

Women are being portrayed to play different roles and like different things from men in numerous of ways in advertisements. Also, women are stereotyped to be not tech savvy and to only enjoy things that are pretty and fashionable. Dell's Della website is an example of a sexist advertisement toward women. Della depicts women to be easy to market to through usage of pastel colors and cute designs and stating that their product is easy to use. Della downgrades the abilities that women can perform and putting them in a different category than men when women should not feel like they are being attacked and considered dumb.