Changes in the Gardens of Science, Wrought by Women

N long ago, in a symposium held here by the New York Academy of Sciences on The Flight from Science and Reason, I gave a paper titled “Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads.” What I have to say in this paper might be called “Creeping Toward Inclusivity in Science, Despite Persistent Toads.” By means of some stories—chiefly personal experiences—and a few statistics, I want to offer homage to intrepid activists who catalyzed remarkable changes. Within a single generation, these changes have greatly enhanced opportunities for women in many professions, especially science. Although optimistic about future prospects, I must also point out some daunting toads and serpents lurking in the gardens of science. These challenge the rising generation of young scientists to be no less intrepid. Much that is unthinkable today was almost unquestioned 25 or 30 years ago. Here are some examples that impressed me back then. All pertain to curious practices that persisted until the late 1960s or early 1970s. On a visit to Oberlin, my hosts proudly told me that it was the first college in the United States to offer coeducation. However, I was amazed to learn that a laundry service was provided for men students but not for women students. Closer to home, Harvard did not allow Radcliffe women to study in Lamont library, which is specifically for undergraduate use, on grounds that women would distract the men from scholarly pursuits. That policy was abruptly abandoned when Radcliffe built Hilles Library, bigger and better. Closer yet to home, I remember that Bell Labs offered jobs to two newly minted Ph.D.s from the same research group in the Harvard Chemistry Department. This dismayed everyone who knew of it, because Bell did not want to hire the more promising of the two, a woman, as a staff scientist but only as a librarian. Of course, in the wider world such things were also pervasive. For instance, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, like other major orchestras, had hardly any women musicians. Now there are many, but that did not come about until the practice developed of having final auditions behind a screen. Even then, the women finalists had to learn not to enter wearing distinctly audible shoes.