STEMinist – Without Me
In 2009, I
developed a tendency towards migraines. Since then, I have lived in four
different countries with entirely different laws on medicine. Some drugs that
are banned in one country aren’t in another and vice versa. For over ten years,
I’ve searched for an effective replacement for my original migraine medication.
During this time, a whisper of a question turned into a deafening demand: why
is it so difficult to treat an ailment as common, yet incapacitating, as a
migraine?
The fact is,
migraines affect one in five women. This statistic is disproportionate to the
number of men who suffer from migraines (one in fifteen). Migraine research is
rarely sex-specific, even though hormone levels affect migraine
tendencies and can differ based on sex. The stigma around migraines - ridicule,
doubt and disbelief by friends, family and colleagues – might be different if
20% of the male population suffered from these debilitating attacks. Yet
migraines remain one of the most underfunded areas of research in the world,
despite being one of the most disabling ailments. But this article isn’t about
migraines.
Why
do we need women in STEM fields?
Women need to be
represented and taken into consideration when developing scientific or
technological innovations. As is, women are rarely included in target markets or as test subjects. Take, for
example, engineering design. For decades, seatbelts have been designed for stereotypical male bodies, thus putting women at significantly higher risk of injury in car
accidents.
Additionally, power
tool designs also favour men, making them less comfortable for women to use. Women
tend to feel colder in office environments because office temperature
ergonomics have been established around the average 70 kg male body. And train
railings are built at a height more comfortable to the average male than
female. Most of the time, women are simply not included in scientific and
technological developments.
Image
Description: A photo of a crowded train showing the arms and upper
bodies of six people of different skin tones holding onto the upper handrail. You
can see the person on the far left’s face, but the rest of them are hidden by
their arms. This person is looking up towards the top left of the photo frame
with a neutral expression. People are in various styles of dress, from business
to casual. The person on the far right is significantly shorter than the others
and only has two fingers placed on the rail (as opposed to the other people,
whose hands are wrapped firmly around the rail).
The story isn’t
too different in medicine. Many women metabolize drugs differently than men. The
changes in some women's bodies from puberty to menopause significantly impact their physical and mental health. They also put these women at risk for depression and
other mental health issues. Yet, female test subjects are still minorities in
most medical research.
I also recently discovered
women are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than men. Still, current
research glazes over the biological differences that impact the disease. And it
is no secret women’s pain has been, and continues to be, dismissed as hysteria.
When my surgeon cut into my jaw bones to drill my wisdom teeth and the
anaesthesia didn’t work, he “reassured” my wailing, howling younger self that
all I was really feeling was a numb vibration. Unsurprisingly, I now have acute
odontophobia.
Some governments
seem to have taken note of such sexism in the STEM fields. In the US, for
example, varying policies over state and federal levels promote the inclusion of
women and minorities for non-gender-specific studies. Researchers are required
to provide a “clear rationale” for excluding women in a study. Further, clinical trials must be designed to include
a valid analysis of whether women or racial and ethnic groups
respond differently than other subjects in the tests.
But governments
cannot always secure the representation we need. I argue the lack of inclusion in
STEM fields is the main reason we need
women representation. While it is the responsibility of researchers and
designers to be inclusive, the truth is, proper inclusion isn’t happening. We
need women to be involved in every step of every process in science and
technology, from ideation to research and development to peer review to larger-scale
decisions.
Image
Description: A comic panel by Rose Kuan. The left-hand side of the
panel shows a medical researcher sitting behind a table against a light pink to
light blue gradient. They are looking into a microscope. They have long, blonde
hair tied up in a red ponytail holder and appear to be wearing bright pink
lipstick. They are also wearing a white lab coat and a navy-blue undershirt. In
the front of the panel, on the same table as the microscope, is a paper with
illegible writing and three test tubes filled with yellow, green and orange
liquid respectively. Above the microscope, the artist has written the words
“When can I find an acidic solution that penetrates this wall of misogyny? …” On
the far-right side of the panel is a brick wall with the words “men in STEM”
written in black on a white word bubble.
It’s not just
about diversity and acceptance of women in what have typically been regarded as
male-dominated fields. It’s also about equality in safety, ergonomics, access
to proper healthcare, and accessible technology. This kind of equality would
ensure our lives matter as much as men’s. Making sure we are well-represented
in the groups making such decisions is one step towards such equality.
And while we work
towards equality, let us remember women have increasingly larger buying power.
Industries would significantly benefit from tapping into this market with women-inclusive
research (or anything more than making half their products pink, flowery and
more expensive). A few industries and companies have shown initiative in this
department. Athletic wear and sports equipment companies spend a great deal of
time and effort creating designs specifically for women.
Companies such as
Green Heron have teamed up with various research groups to make general
agricultural tools more ergonomically feasible for women. Prosthetic products
have seen a significant increase in women-centric design. The more women we
have at the table, the more voices can ensure others we matter. With a more proactive
approach towards inclusive research and a growing number of women in STEM, it
is hopefully only a matter of time until women’s lives are considered equally
valuable to those of men.
By: Shreyasi Mukerji
Sources:
Mastroianni AC,
Faden R, Federman D (1994). Institute of
Medicine (US) Committee on Ethical and Legal Issues Relating to the Inclusion
of Women in Clinical Studies. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 1994.
Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK236532/ [Accessed 11 Mar. 2019].
Parks,
J. (2019). Study Finds Cars Designed to Protect Men, Not Women.
AutoKnow - SafeAuto Blog. Available at:
http://blog.safeauto.com/study-finds-cars-designed-to-protect-men-not-women/
[Accessed 12 Mar. 2019].
Ely,
K. (2015). The World is Designed for Men. Medium. Available at:
https://medium.com/hh-design/the-world-is-designed-for-men-d06640654491
[Accessed 12 Mar. 2019].
Kuan,
R. (2017). Cartoon: Sexism in STEM. [image] Available at:
https://emorywheel.com/cartoon-sexism-in-stem/ [Accessed 13 Mar. 2019].
Dori,
E. (2016). Designed with Men in Mind. [online] UX Collective.
Available at: https://uxdesign.cc/designed-with-men-in-mind-786f1cfa652a
[Accessed 13 Mar. 2019].
Editor’s Note: Sexism in the STEM
fields does not only affect women. Trans men and nonbinary people also suffer
from a lack of representation in STEM. Unfortunately, in a lot of scientific
research, “outlier” identities (including trans people and nonbinary people)
are either discarded or lumped into the categories of “male” or “female,” depending
on one’s assigned gender at birth. This article focuses on women in the STEM
fields, but more research and inclusion of various gender identities needs to
be addressed moving forward.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily
reflect the views of the Sydney Feminists. Our Blogger and Tumblr serve as
platforms for a diverse array of women to put forth their ideas and explore
topics. To learn more about the philosophy behind TSF’s Blogger/ Tumblr, please
read our statement here: https://www.sydneyfeminists.org/a
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