Scientists are likely not to be interested in thinking about housework. Housework is, however, related to the life of the mind. Scientists wear clean clothes to the lab, eat food procured and prepared by someone, and live in reasonably clean houses. This labor used to be done by stay-at-home wives. Now, housework is often done by wives and…

Over the past three decades, the overall percentage of women receiving degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics--known collectively as the STEM disciplines--has increased dramatically. This growth tends to mask at least three other aspects of the demographics of the science and technology workforce. Unfortunately, aggregated…

Fiscal year 2001 marked an important milestone in policies to attract and retain women in science and engineering. That year, the National Science Foundation (NSF) initiated an awards program called ADVANCE at a funding level of $19 million. The program supports efforts by institutions and individuals to empower women to participate fully in…