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" When I was in 7th grade, we were all given an exam. It was science and math, and the boys who did well were skipped ahead so that when they got to be juniors or seniors in high school they would be able to go to the local community college and take calculus and physics there. And I wasn't skipped ahead. "

Eileen Pollack

Community

Science

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" Writers find common ground not through the homelands they once inhabited but the thematic questions with which they grapple. "

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" As a physics major at Yale in the 1970s, I developed crushes on nearly all my male professors. "

" If a female student wants to drop a physics course, no one questions her, but if a male student tries to drop it, he will get pushback and encouraged to stay in, since he will need it later in life. "

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" I was nearly as far behind in calculus as I was in physics. But I wasn't the only woman in the class, so I felt more comfortable asking questions. "

Eileen Pollack

Class

Physics

" When parents ask why there are still so few girls in advanced science and math classes in high school, I tell them, because girls still need way more encouragement than boys to take those courses. "

" Success in math and the hard sciences, far from being a matter of gender, is almost entirely dependent on culture - a culture that teaches girls math isn't cool and no one will date them if they excel in physics. "

" The most powerful determinant of whether a woman goes on in science might be whether anyone encourages her to go on. "

" I write and teach creative nonfiction. I was a reporter. "

" If there's a stereotype that you're not supposed to be good at something, that still gets so badly in your way of concentrating. "

" For women, even if she's nerdy enough to be Steve Jobs, she's undateable. "

" Many of my friends are scientists. "

" Most applicants to creative writing programs submit stories about the angst of their suburban childhoods. "

" When you have different kinds of scientific and mathematical minds approaching problems, you will get more solutions. This leads to more innovation and more creative design. "

" When I left Yale, it was so painful to me. I had worked so hard, gotten so far, and just walked away. "

Eileen Pollack

Left

Hard

" Given that many girls are indoctrinated to believe that they should be feminine and modest about their abilities, as well as brought up to assume that girls are not innately gifted at science or math, it is not surprising that so few can see themselves as successful computer scientists. "

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" Science and math are hard for everybody, and it's usually not a matter or being born gifted at it or not. It's hard work, but it can be a lot of fun! "

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