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A review by shelbylm31
The Only Woman in the Room: Why Science Is Still a Boys' Club by Eileen Pollack
5.0
I expected this to be the classic story about how women are perceived to be underrepresented in science because they are unwilling to sacrifice their family, and therefore need to work harder in order to overcome the stigma that they simply are not intelligent/committed enough. Instead, it explored the various cultural and sociological barriers that prevent women from pursuing higher ed in STEM, mainly their need for more encouragement to keep going. Not because they are any less capable than men in the same fields, but because they have been raised to lack confidence that comes naturally to many men in scientific and mathematical fields.
Pollack explores both her love for the humanities and her love for the sciences, as well as the fine line of trying to balance both, particularly the defeat she felt in walking away from physics to instead pursue the "easier" task of writing (though she does realize that the reputation of the humanities as easier is not indeed fair). She addressed women in STEM from a different perspective than what I am used to, as well as discussed a wide number of related topics that I didn't realize I had been needing to hear.
Pollack explores both her love for the humanities and her love for the sciences, as well as the fine line of trying to balance both, particularly the defeat she felt in walking away from physics to instead pursue the "easier" task of writing (though she does realize that the reputation of the humanities as easier is not indeed fair). She addressed women in STEM from a different perspective than what I am used to, as well as discussed a wide number of related topics that I didn't realize I had been needing to hear.