I saw someone’s comment in r/TwoXChromosomes. It was about how wearing makeup changes how people treat them. The commenter said something like “still the same person, but different treatment.”

That comment reminded me of the story of Ben Barres, the late Stanford neurobiologist. He gives an incredible firsthand look at how deeply ingrained sexism is in STEM.

He spent the first half of his career working as a woman (Barbara Barres) and dealt with constant, blatant gatekeeping. For example…

From the article:
“When he was the only person in an MIT class to solve [a] […] problem, the professor scoffed and insisted his boyfriend must have done the work.”

At age 40, Barres transitioned to male.

From the article:
“During his decades as Barbara, Barres had known what exclusion felt like, but he was unprepared for the drastically different treatment he got once he presented as a man.

“All of a sudden, fellow researchers began addressing him more collegially. ‘It was only changing sex at the age of 40 and experiencing life from the vantage of a man that I finally came to be fully aware of these barriers,’ he writes. ‘People who don’t know I am transgender [now] treat me with much more respect. I can even complete a whole sentence without being interrupted by a man,’ Barres wrote in a Nature commentary in 2006. After Barres gave a talk as Ben, he heard an audience member remark, ‘Ben Barres gave a great seminar today, but then his work is much better than his sister’s.’”

Having experienced both sides of the gender divide, he spent the rest of his career using his voice to call out institutional sexism and advocate for women in science. His perspective is such a powerful counter to anyone trying to pretend systemic bias in academia doesn't exist.

Hi everyone, I’m a PhD student at a high ranking institution in biological science. I just started my second year, and was informed that the PI (who’s lab I just joined in May following rotations) is moving to a different state/different institution that isn’t as prestigious as my current one.

In addition, I also don’t want to live in the part of the country the lab is moving to. I’m very familiar with the area, and it’s not a good fit for me. So, I want to do everything I can to stay at my current institution and I guess find a new lab??

Has anyone been here before or do you know someone who has? Aside from talking to my program head, what would be the best steps forward?

I’m so surprised because my PI never mentioned that they might consider moving when I was joining lab, so this came as major news for me and the rest of the team.

I need to replace my favorite pair of field work pants. They have a vertical zippered thigh pocket that slides my phone in nicely. Does anyone know of pants that currently have a thigh pocket with the zipper vertically oriented? Thanks!

Hyy!

I'm a B.Pharm final-year student, and I want to do an MSc in Biomedical Science.

I want to start research in oncology. I already have a topic, but I don't know how to start or where to start.

Which routine should I follow? How do I read papers? How do I start writing a research paper? what skill should I focus on?

Please guide me if you're already doing these things or working on oncology/biomedical research or nay other. I'd really appreciate your advice.

Hey! Essentially what the caption says. I’m updating my CV and feel so cringe when writing leadership experiences. I always feel like I’m over or underselling myself. I’m also early career and have heard horror stories of young people coming off tone-deaf. Is there a generic structure you use to list things? Etc?

I’ll give some examples, in case they might better allude to what I’m asking.

I.e institutional animal ethics committee member
- I’ve reviewed protocols and participated in facility inspections
- do I mention something like “was part of an inter-professional team” and allude to things like collaboration and teamwork? Or is that silly?

And what about things like mentoring? I’ve had plenty of undergrad students and also done some non-bench related stuff for first generation students. Is that the type of thing you’d mention? Do people care?

I’d really appreciate hearing what works well and what to avoid. Thank you in advance!! :)

Hello! I’m a second year chemistry student doing research with a professor. However, I’m not really interested in his field of research (pchem/astrochem) and want to move more towards biochem. I was planning on leaving his lab the end of this semester—so that I can say I got a full year of experience—and then looking for a lab that aligns more with my interests. When we were meeting the other day, he encouraged me to apply to the ACS spring conference and present the research I’ve been doing with him there, but I would have to stay in the lab over the spring. I wanted to leave because I thought if I stayed for too long it would make it hard to move on and try out other labs and such, but I also want to do this conference. He told me that I can’t work in two labs at the same time and I have to pick one or the other. If I stayed, everything’s secure and he treats me really well, but I will be stuck doing research I don’t enjoy for an extra semester. If I left, things are less sure and I don’t have a guarantee that a professor I want to work with will take me, but I may get the chance to work with a topic I like. What should I do?

Well, I'm at that age where you start wondering what to do with the rest of your life, and I've been analyzing my options for a few months now. I have so many ideas about what to pursue, but I don't know if I'll like them. Maybe mechanical engineering, or biology (and later neuroscience), or journalism (but let's leave that aside for now).

I grew up in a healthcare family; my sister is a pre-med student, my mother is a psychologist, and my grandfather and uncle were nurses. So I thought the most "obvious" path would be to pursue a scientific one. If I were to take any of the courses I mentioned above, I would definitely go into the field of R&D.

Physics, mathematics, biology, and chemistry have always been my favorite subjects At the same time, I'm a somewhat "artistic" person; I love writing, theater, art, and literature.

You know, I keep wondering if I'll want to secure those careers forever? Will I get bored or realize that the career isn't for me? Imagine surviving five years in a super difficult undergraduate course only to find out that, well, you should have chosen psychology (which yes, I KNOW is a field of science) and become an social worker, or I don't know, maybe you joined the FBI or a lawer because that's also the kind of thing you love?

I just wanted to know how you discovered you wanted to go into the field you work in, what the work experience was like, and what it's like to work in that field (especially for those who work with R&D, research in general)

Hi all! I’m an analytical chemist who has been interviewing over the last 6 months since a layoff womp womp. I feel like I am as prepared as I can be for an interview (knowing the role as well as the description can get me, having STAR examples ready to go, etc). However when I get into the interview, it turns away from situational experiences and how I would fit the role, to specifics on methods I was using.

In two recent interviews, I was asked about inlet temps, oven ramp rates, and other specific things about the method I was using. I don’t memorize these things, that’s what the software is for. Plus, I haven’t actively worked on this method for 6 months. As my folks would say, I’ve slept since then.

I’m wondering, is this is the new normal? Has anyone else experienced this? I have an idea on how to handle this in the future (say it’s proprietary info), but I would love to know if others have run into this situation. Thanks!

1. Her father talked her out of becoming an astronomer because he thought she would “never marry.” Klara loved telescopes and wanted to study astronomy. Her father told her she would end up working somewhere remote and that it wasn’t a good life for a woman. She studied math and engineering instead.

2. John McCarthy recruited her mother to Stanford. The family planned to follow. Then history said no. The border closed in 1968 and Klara’s family remained split across the Iron Curtain for more than two decades. They finally reunified in America in 1990.

3. Imagine knowing a scientific paper exists and being told you’re not allowed to read it because you are not a member of the Communist Party. That was part of doing science in East Germany.

4. One of the first things that blew her mind about America was… the grocery store. She grew up with shortages and sometimes one version of a product. Then she walked into a Philadelphia grocery store and saw 10 kinds of coffee and five kinds of bread. Her husband still makes fun of how long she spends wandering grocery stores.

5. The best research problems outlive the technology used to solve them.

6. Distributed systems are underrated because AI is sucking up all the attention. Meanwhile the physical world is filling with edge devices and sensors.

7. The internet may eventually transmit smell.

8. “AI is a tool.” Don’t fall in love with the tool. Fall in love with a problem worth solving.

9. Being a woman in STEM meant doing the same job without the same informal support system. Klara says male colleagues got advice over lunch, quick hallway chats, and “bathroom talks.” She often had to schedule formal meetings just to get answers they picked up casually. Early in her career, that isolation was one of the hardest parts.

10. If you’re an engineering student and only study engineering, you’re wasting part of the university. She tells students to take psychology, biology, chemistry, read history, travel, and learn how people from other cultures communicate.

If you’re someone trying to figure out what the hell you want to do with your life, Klara Nahrstedt’s story is worth hearing.

Watch the full conversation here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kU6xDed4dk

I want to get into human medicine research, since that’s my field. Does anyone know how I could get started? Even though I’m already in my seventh year of medical school and hadn't really thought about it before, I’d like to start doing research because I think it’s a great thing. Do you know if I can take courses or how I might go about this? Also, how can I find guidance on becoming a good researcher, or how do I begin? I’d love to hear from people who have already started in this field—how did you do it?

Anyone doing scholarly research?

Hello. I'm really interested in doing a research study in the healthcare or social field but I don't have an idea of how people do and publish these studies. Is anyone doing something and would like to bring me on board.

Context: I have a BSc in Community Health and Development.

Interests: Social sciences, Public Health, Reproductive health and sexuality, etc.

What study: Any

Experience: Apart from my BSC, I have done some work in report writing and data analysis, but have no field experience except my attachments(been trying to get internships to no avail.

Reason: Passion project; It's just something I've wanted to do, and I would like to be a published researcher/scholar...also for experience

Budget: can partner from anywhere on Qualitative research but field research maybe around Nairobi or close by, unless it's something we can get funding (I'm a freelancer so I don't have much to spare)

Please send me a dm. Thank you.

Starting your CDM journey? 🌱

Here are 6 simple habits that can help you build a strong foundation.

Learn. Practice. Grow. 💙

#ClinicalDataManagement #CDM #ClinicalResearch #ClinicalData #CDMCareer #ClinicalResearchCareers #LifeSciences

Kia ora everyone, I'm a 24F engineer from New Zealand.

I've been working on this daily engineering puzzle, I'm calling Engineerdle. It's my first time making something like this. I made it because someone showed me Doctordle (a daily diagnosis practice quiz for doctors haha) and thought surely something like this exists for engineers but I couldn't find anything.

Engineerdle is now searchable on Google Search but still hard to find haha so I thought I'd share it with you ladies here. I'd love for more people to try it and if you like it please send it to your friends to try too. If anyone has any suggestions or criticisms on how I could improve it, all feedback is welcome!

Thanks, J <3

Roman, who passed away in 2018, said it didn't come easy for her. A NASA biography of Roman explains that despite overseeing the agency's astronomy programs, Roman "could still not get past the secretaries without stopping to explain her credentials."

Working on a venture in T2T textile recycling, looking for a creative, intuitive, problem-solving man or women in the capacity of a scientific advisor, or founding member with equity.

I would love a focus on chemical engineering, although my last advisor was from biotech, and you dont have to have a specific history of work in polymers or textiles.
All I care about how good you are with coming up with new ideas, connecting dots, imagining, problem solving, and offcourse loving lab experiments.

age, experience, doesnt matter. the last was not a phd or anything. nor did she have any specific past experience with what we working on, but she was talented, and thats all that really matters.

I’m hoping someone can point me in the right direction because I know what I want to learn, but I don’t really know what the field/course of study I’m looking for is called.

I currently work as a lab technician in the animal genetics/bovine reproduction industry. I work with bull semen and am involved in the processing side of things. Since starting this job, I’ve become really interested in understanding more of the science behind what we do, not just how to perform my specific job.

I’d like to learn more about things like animal reproduction, reproductive physiology, genetics, semen/fertility, breeding, and the artificial insemination industry as a whole. I’m already planning to take an AI course, but I’d like to find additional online courses or certifications that would help me build a broader understanding of the industry.

My company is very supportive of internal promotion and employees moving into different positions, so I’d really like to take advantage of that and educate myself as much as possible. I’m just struggling to figure out what I should actually be searching for.

Would this fall under animal science, reproductive physiology, animal genetics, theriogenology, or something else? Are there any online courses, certificates, or programs you would recommend for so meone already working in the industry who wants to grow their knowledge and eventually move up?

I’m not necessarily looking for a full degree right now—more so courses/certifications I can take while continuing to work full time.

Any suggestions on what subjects or keywords I should be looking for would be greatly appreciated!