Pythagoras Trousers [Paperback]

Wertheim attempts to show how Science, Religion, and Women have all been related over the course of humankind. Specifically she focuses on how the connection between mathematics, and later physics, and religion have combined ideals over the course of the last two and a half millennia which led to the downfall or lack of participation for women in the field of mathematics. She begins her book in about 500 BC with Pythagoras. Pythagoras studied mathematics with the Babylonians and began the theory that numbers were divine. Pythagoras then started a cult in the south of Italy that focused on the study of numbers. This was a male dominated cult that attempted to show that numbers stood for certain things. The number three represented men and the number two represented women. This led to or was caused by (I'm not sure) the idea that odd numbers were better than even numbers. The theory that men were better suited for scientific investigation was passed down to each following generation. Throughout her book Wertheim attempted to give the reader a history of mathematical science. She told about the work of many famous mathematicians including Newton, Copernicus, Galileo, and Einstein. In the case of most history books they only tell about what famous men did but she integrated information about what women scientists were doing during the same time periods. Some names mentioned included Bassi, Hypatia, Hildegard, and Noether. Over the course of the book she told of the relationship between religion (Christianity) and science. Mathematics, biology, chemistry, and physics became the religion of many scientists. Just as in religion men held all positions of power and were very reluctant to give them up. Even women who made incredible new findings in the sciences were never allowed into the upper societies of this scientific priesthood. To this day the number of women working in the sciences is much less than that of men. In her final chapter Werthheim attempts to incorporate this idea that mathematics followed the ideals of religion by not allowing women to participate. She also says that women would bring a much different and possibly better approach present day physics. This I disagree with. I think that women's involvement would be just the same as men's involvement. Some changes might occur if the number of women working in the field of physics were equal to that of men but I believe that would just be due to the larger number of people working in the field. The same changes would occur if the same number of people who entered the physics workforce were men. The number of areas being studied in any field is in direct relation to the total number of people working in the field.

However I have a few quibbles:
Why the obsession with Nobel prizes? There are heaps of science-related prizes, and from a statistical point of view, it could be that the Nobel folks' gender problems could affect their choice of other catetory winners, too.
Why do we have to justify that women should be allowed into science to "humanise" it? Women do not have to justify their participation, or lack of participation in any field. As human beings, they are entitled to participate anywhere, anytime, anyhow.
I am rather annoyed at so many people wanting to blame teachers for girls and women not taking up certain subjects. Sure, I've had my share of teachers that made mefeel good about myself and those who totally ignored me (or my 4th grade teacher who made me reread books I read in 3rd grade --no, I STILL haven't forgetten that!).
But I think that more importantly we also need to look at the support and messages children get from their family units in terms of helping them with homework , going along to parent-teacher conferences and school nights (ie giving the message that school counts), and giving girls analytical toys like jigsaw puzzles, Legos, Lincoln Logs, Mr Wizard science kits, DIY radios, etc, and watching Nova together.

I am so thankful that my parents helped me keep my sense of wonder and urged me to put my thinking cap on, even as far back(!) as the '60s, before the days of Title IX and EEO. I still wait each month for my Scientific American to come in the mail, and checked my e-mail a few months back for the latest Mars photos.

That having been said, as a CPA, I sure wish I knew how to get more girls interested in accounting as well as science. We only have 4 women at my office, and we enjoy our work so much! I would like other girls to think about finance instead of supermodelling as a career possibility. I knew when I was a girl that it was either pure science or finance for me, and I was right.