Summers's sense
ARE WOMEN and science like oil and water? Harvard's president, Lawrence Summers, says no, and in a statement Monday he described his deep commitment to the advancement of women in science.
But outrage flared last week when Summers spoke at a conference on women and minorities in the sciences and engineering. He raised questions about whether innate gender differences account for the low numbers of women in the sciences, the impact of long work weeks, socialization versus genes, and a possible dampening of discrimination.
What some heard were scorching, stale cliches. This isn't the first time Summers's blunt style has burned ears. According to colleagues of the African American studies professor Cornel West, he and Summers had a heated conversation about West's academic work. West ultimately left Harvard.
In the present case, Summers deserves some credit for tackling a sticky issue. But missing, apparently, was the diplomacy that could have sparked a productive conversation. Fortunately, ample chance remains to talk, to dismiss myths and solve problems.
Are men and women innately different? It's a moot point, since women have already shown they can be first-class scientists. For her book "The Door in the Dream: Conversations with Eminent Women in Science," Elga Wasserman, a senior research scholar at Yale Law School, interviewed women who were members of the National Academy of Sciences. She found that these women were like all scientists: Their approach to science differed vastly regardless of gender.
Discussing women and science means discussing the nature of opportunity. The country is awash in computer games and science fiction. But America is a science-poor environment for girls and boys. Schools lack teachers with the academic qualifications, resources, and grit to make teenagers fluent in atomic structure and the periodic table. Students often don't have the chance to explore their dreams of becoming an astronaut or a marine biologist.
Women in the field who become parents also should get more respect. To encourage mothers to choose academic science over the private sector, schools could allow more time for research and families -- an approach that could also help men.
Market forces work slowly as an antidote for discrimination. Deliberate action is faster. Wasserman points to the dramatic increase in the number of women in the sciences after the passage of equal opportunity legislation in the 1970s. Harvard officials also see the need for action. Prior to Summers's speech the school had committed $25 million to promoting the hiring of "underrepresented groups," including women and minorities.
Now it's time for Summers to step off of his tongue and modernize the debate.
