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Because most women are not good at programming. Because their brain lacks the wiring [1]. Otherwise they would've already jumped at a chance to secure $150k/y

Because most women are not good at programming. Because their brain lacks the wiring [1]. Otherwise they would've already jumped at a chance to secure $150k/year jobs. Stop writing superficial articles that don't address the fundamentals. [1] http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2007/09/why_arent_more_women_in_scienc.php http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2007/09/why_arent_mor... "Mental rotation tasks (see this CogDaily post), which require working with a three-dimensional representation of an object, have been found to have very large sex differences favoring males"

btipling 16y ago
Yeah ok please show me a YC startup (still in startup mode) playing $150K for any position. There's a lot of risk in working at a startup, I think that plays a factor too although I have no data to back this up, just a vague recollection of college courses and reading.
palish 16y ago
I recently saw that a "Walgreens Pharmacist" is typically paid around ~$120k/yr. If I set my mind to it, I am fairly certain I could become a Walgreens Pharmacist. However I have no interest whatsoever in that. So regardless of the pay, I would not pursue it. Do you see the problem here? This issue is deeper than you give it credit for. For example, if women are different in some fundamental way, what is the difference? It seems just as likely that it results in them not being interested rather than lacking ability.
- chailatte 16y ago
  "So regardless of the pay, I would not pursue it." The current unemployment rate for college grad worldwide is ~30%. So you're not the norm.
  - palish 16y ago
    This is true. That's another interesting question I think about sometimes... What would I do, if programming did not exist? Architecture, maybe...
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SpikeGronim 16y ago
Most people aren't good at programming, at least until you train them. It's hard to convince women to spend ten years becoming excellent programmers when their peers disrespect and harass them. I've never seen credible evidence that women's brains "lack the wiring" - that's an awfully Victorian era sentiment. The fundamental problem here is with the behavior of men in the field of computer science.
- robwgibbons 16y ago
  If I were interested in becoming a cook, I would take the classes and become a cook. If I were interested in becoming a dancer, I would damn well become a dancer. You can't just say it's the mens' fault. That is disingenuous and insulting to me as a male programmer. The fundamental problem has nothing to do with men: it's that women aren't interested at all in computers. They're interested in babies, families, and things that are warm, cuddly and emotional. I'm not being sexist, I am quoting my girlfriend.
  - SpikeGronim 16y ago
    You are being sexist - you're overgeneralizing from one example (your girlfriend). I didn't mean to insult you. I did mean to say that the aggregate behavior of many men has discouraged many women from participating in CS. That's not disingenuous, it's a fact supported by evidence.
  - sn 16y ago
    Your girlfriend is sexist then.
- chailatte 16y ago
  "when their peers disrespect and harass them" That's pretty damning accusation you're making for programmers everywhere. Do you have citations?
  - SpikeGronim 16y ago
    Yes, I have a citation[1]. I've also got anecdotal evidence from studying computer science at Stuyvesant High School and Carnegie Mellon University. To be clear, I didn't mean that programmers everywhere disrespect and harass women. I meant that sufficiently many programmers act this way for it to have a negative effect on female CS participation. 1. http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/there-sexual-harassment-problem-open-source-c http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/there-sexual-hara... EDITED TO ADD: where's your citation for the "brain wiring" comment above?

btipling 16y ago

Yeah ok please show me a YC startup (still in startup mode) playing $150K for any position. There's a lot of risk in working at a startup, I think that plays a factor too although I have no data to back this up, just a vague recollection of college courses and reading.

palish 16y ago

I recently saw that a "Walgreens Pharmacist" is typically paid around ~$120k/yr. If I set my mind to it, I am fairly certain I could become a Walgreens Pharmacist. However I have no interest whatsoever in that. So regardless of the pay, I would not pursue it. Do you see the problem here? This issue is deeper than you give it credit for. For example, if women are different in some fundamental way, what is the difference? It seems just as likely that it results in them not being interested rather than lacking ability.

chailatte 16y ago
"So regardless of the pay, I would not pursue it." The current unemployment rate for college grad worldwide is ~30%. So you're not the norm.
- palish 16y ago
  This is true. That's another interesting question I think about sometimes... What would I do, if programming did not exist? Architecture, maybe...
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]

SpikeGronim 16y ago

Most people aren't good at programming, at least until you train them. It's hard to convince women to spend ten years becoming excellent programmers when their peers disrespect and harass them. I've never seen credible evidence that women's brains "lack the wiring" - that's an awfully Victorian era sentiment. The fundamental problem here is with the behavior of men in the field of computer science.

robwgibbons 16y ago
If I were interested in becoming a cook, I would take the classes and become a cook. If I were interested in becoming a dancer, I would damn well become a dancer. You can't just say it's the mens' fault. That is disingenuous and insulting to me as a male programmer. The fundamental problem has nothing to do with men: it's that women aren't interested at all in computers. They're interested in babies, families, and things that are warm, cuddly and emotional. I'm not being sexist, I am quoting my girlfriend.
- SpikeGronim 16y ago
  You are being sexist - you're overgeneralizing from one example (your girlfriend). I didn't mean to insult you. I did mean to say that the aggregate behavior of many men has discouraged many women from participating in CS. That's not disingenuous, it's a fact supported by evidence.
- sn 16y ago
  Your girlfriend is sexist then.
chailatte 16y ago
"when their peers disrespect and harass them" That's pretty damning accusation you're making for programmers everywhere. Do you have citations?
- SpikeGronim 16y ago
  Yes, I have a citation[1]. I've also got anecdotal evidence from studying computer science at Stuyvesant High School and Carnegie Mellon University. To be clear, I didn't mean that programmers everywhere disrespect and harass women. I meant that sufficiently many programmers act this way for it to have a negative effect on female CS participation. 1. http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/there-sexual-harassment-problem-open-source-c http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/there-sexual-hara... EDITED TO ADD: where's your citation for the "brain wiring" comment above?