Waubonsee Community College

Women in mathematics, the addition of difference, Claudia Henrion

Label
Women in mathematics, the addition of difference, Claudia Henrion
Language
eng
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 287-289) and index
resource.biographical
contains biographical information
Illustrations
illustrations
Index
index present
Literary Form
non fiction
Main title
Women in mathematics
Nature of contents
bibliography
Oclc number
36883955
Responsibility statement
Claudia Henrion
Series statement
Race, gender, and science
Sub title
the addition of difference
Summary
"Mathematics is often described as the purest of the sciences, the least tainted by subjectivity or cultural influences. Theoretically, the only requirement for a life of mathematics is mathematical ability. And yet we see very few women mathematicians. The myth that women are no good at math is deeply entrenched in our culture, perpetuated by headlines in newspapers ("Do Boys Have a Math Gene?") and a focus on "math anxiety." Many people are therefore surprised to learn that in the United States, 46 percent of the bachelor's degrees in mathematics go to women. Why then does they myth continue? Many factors contribute, but an important one is the lack of visible women mathematicians. Their presence diminishes dramatically as one goes through the "mathematics pipline": women earn only about 24 percent of the math Ph. D.s and make up less than 6 percent of the full-time mathematics faculty at doctorate-granting institutions in the U.S. (They represent less than 3 percent of the tenured mathematics professors at these institutions.) Based upon a series of nine intensive interviews with prominent women mathematicians throughout the United States, this book investigates the role of gender in the complex relationship between the mathematician, the mathematical community, and mathematics itself."--Back cover
Table Of Contents
Rugged individualism and the mathematical Marlboro man : mathematicians work in complete isolation ; profile : Karen Uhlenbeck, Marian Pour-El -- What's a nice girl like you doing in a place like this? : women and mathematics don't mix ; profile : Mary Ellen Rudin, Fan Chung -- Is mathematics a young man's game? : mathematicians do their best work in their youth ; profile : Joan Birman -- Women and gender politics : mathematics and politics don't mix ; profile : Lenore Blum, Judy Roitman -- Double jeopardy : gender and race : only white males do mathematics ; profile : Vivienne Malone-Mayes, Fern Hunt -- The quest for certain and eternal knowledge : mathematics is a realm of complete objectivity ; Mathematics is non-human
Content
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