Why we need more women in Science

By Tanishka Goyal 

Excellence in the field of science is a boon to humanity. And women have played a prominent part in this hunt for knowledge. But, despite their incredible breakthroughs in science, globally only 30% of women are represented.

The STEM-based fields are still ‘considered’ a man’s job despite the fact that women in history have played an excellent role. Until recently, most of them haven’t received the deserved recognition due to these sexist notions.

For instance, Rosalind Franklin, the famous English chemist, played a huge role in the discovery of the structure of DNA. Her colleague shared this work with the molecular biologists, James Watson and Francis Crick without Franklin’s knowledge. Later, the three received a Nobel Prize for their discovery. Due to this, Franklin remained an unsung contributor of the ‘Double Helix.’

If I were to ask you to imagine a computer programmer, you would probably imagine a male with square-shaped spectacles sitting in front of a computer screen. Very few people are aware that Ada Lovelace, a female mathematician was the first computer programmer in the world. While we read about the contribution of women in science, it would be unfair not to mention Marie Curie-Sklodowska’s name. She was the first and only person to receive two separate Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry. She met with an enormous amount of sexism in her remarkable career.

Till date, women are considered less capable of science-based fields and research. This is because women have been discouraged to take up Science for centuries. They have to first fight gender stereotypes and conventional mind sets.

Several reports have shown that women don’t feel welcome in STEM-related workplaces. They make nearly half of the total population and often struggle to gain recognition and success.

According to me, if we want to grow as a society, we need to uncover the potential of women in science. It is critical for the development-related growth and gender representation in the country.