I've always thought it's because early computing was very similar to data entry/accounting. http://gender.stanford.edu/news/2011/researcher-reveals-how-%E2%80%

I've always thought it's because early computing was very similar to data entry/accounting. http://gender.stanford.edu/news/2011/researcher-reveals-how-%E2%80%9Ccomputer-geeks%E2%80%9D-replaced-%E2%80%9Ccomputergirls%E2%80%9D http://gender.stanford.edu/news/2011/researcher-reveals-how-... > Rather, managers hired women because they expected programming to be a low-skill clerical function, akin to filing, typing, or telephone switching. Assuming that the real “brain work” in electronic computing would be limited to the hardware side, managers reserved these tasks for male engineers.