A few days ago I vented about a pin-up calendar featuring a bunch of female engineering students in the near-nude. But everyone’s a critic, right? How does one put forward a different image of women in science, engineering and other geeky areas beyond the hoary misguided stereotype of unattractive, unnatural misfit?
One way, of course, is to collect a couple dozen essays from women about their experiences being women in male-dominated fields that address topics from life in the lab or cubicle to talking about fashion and sex. And if you’ve been reading this blog for the last month or so, you’ll know that I won’t miss any opportunity to plug our book.
But for those of you who might prefer a more homeopathic remedy, there’s also another opportunity for geek women to stand up and be counted in images—and yes, you can keep your clothes on. (Please!) The new online science magazine Inkling has launched a contest in search of the photo which best suits the caption “OMG she’s such a geek!” It runs until the end of the month—read the rules to get all the details about where to send and info on the Ada Lovelace poster prize.
Full disclosure: I’ve written a few pieces for Inkling, which aspires to tell science stories with a touch more whimsy than they are often reported. In the words of co-editors Anne Casselman and Anna Gosline: “Founded in late 2006, we cover the science that pervades our life, makes us laugh, and helps us choose our breakfast foods. We aim to capture a larger proportion of female readers, but, of course, everyone is always welcome.”
Check Inkling out—you’ll probably learn something and have a chuckle at the same time. And if you think you can make a winning photo of female geekitude, have at it. I’ve set the bar pretty low here just wearing my Hello Kitty t-shirt—I know you can do better. There’s gotta be someone out there mired in cable spaghetti or doing cartwheels in the cavern of an accelerator!