My mother majored in physics in Oklahoma in the late 1950's and early 1960's- the sexism she faced was overwhelming...
The situation is greatly improved since then, but no where near ideal- my field is still very male dominated... and rather blatant sexism still exists.
However at my current place of employment if you are blatantly sexist it will at the very LEAST will hurt your career, or quite likely get you fired- which is as it should be.
For my part, some of the best scientists I have worked with were female- I would like to think I don't harbor bias, but I try to keep in mind that I may... I have seen male co-workers demonstrate unconscious bias-and I am sure none of them meant to, or consider themselves sexist... (usually it involves talking over or ignoring when a woman co-worker is speaking).
If it is any consolation, the worst offenders are from an older generation- so I think things will continue to get better in that respect.
As for amateur vs professional scientist, with the availability of information these days it is possible for a determined amateur to develop world class knowledge of a subject - at least in some fields that don't heavily rely on expensive equipment to do the basic work and learning... I probably would not take an amateur experimental particle physicist very seriously, but would be willing to accept an amateur geologist might actually know their topic.
Formal education in a topic does not determine how well someone can learn it - it absolutely helps, but is not a pre-requisite.
Off Topic » in reply to You won't be the first one
Another tragic aspect of our society
The whole thread (44 posts)
- Fear, a story
- Deimos and Phobos
- and another perspective (lighthearted from my point of view)
- From a different perspective
- I probably wouldn't run... but not because I am some macho badass...I just can't run fast
- You have to wonder what motivates assholes like that...
- You call them rednecks.