One Chemistry Professor's Misconceptions about Gender and Scientific Ability:Was It Gender Bias or Gender-Population Bias?

摘要

Comments by Harvard's President Lawrence Summers regarding the scientific prowess of females compared to males prompted us,father and daughter educators,to address our own impressions about the scientific abilities of the genders.The senior author of this letter looked back on 33 years as a chemistry professor plus another 12 as a chemistry student to find that his impressions had undergone a transformation favoring male superiority in the early years and female superiority later.However,the junior author felt there was no gender-based explanation for scientific ability or academic success.