Motherhood, the Elephant in the Laboratory: Women Scientists Speak Out

by Monosson, Emily

• ISBN13: 9780801446641
• ISBN10: 0801446643
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-05-01
• Publisher: Cornell Univ Pr

Summary

Nearly half of graduate and undergraduate students in the sciences today are women. As increasing numbers of these women pursue research careers in science, many who choose to have children discover the unique difficulties of balancing a professional life in these highly competitive (and often male-dominated) fields with the demands of motherhood. Although this issue directly affects the career advancement of women scientists, it is rarely discussed as a professional concern, leaving individuals to face the dilemma on their own. To address this obvious but unacknowledged crisis-the elephant in the laboratory, according to one scientist-Emily Monosson, an independent toxicologist, has brought together 34 women scientists from overlapping generations and several fields of research-including physics, chemistry, geography, paleontology, physics, among others-to share their experiences. From women who began their careers in the 1970s and brought their newborns to work, breastfeeding them under ponchos, to graduate students today, the authors of the candid essays written for this groundbreaking volume reveal a range of career choices: the authors work part-time and full-time; they opt out and then opt back in; they become entrepreneurs and job share; they teach high school and have achieved tenure. The personal stories that comprise Motherhood, The Elephant in the Laboratory not only show the many ways in which women can successfully combine motherhood and a career in science but also address and redefine what it means to be a successful scientist. These valuable narratives encourage institutions of higher education and scientific research to accommodate the needs of scientists who decide to have children.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
1970s	p. 21
Balancing Family and Career Demands with 20/20 Hindsight	p. 25
Extreme Motherhood: You Can't Get There from Here	p. 31
Careers versus Child Care in Academia	p. 35
Identities: Looking Back over Forty Years as a Social Scientist, Woman, and Mother	p. 41
Costs and Rewards of Success in Academia, or Bouncing into the Rubber Ceiling	p. 51
One Set of Choices as a Mom and Scientist	p. 56
1980s	p. 61
Three Sides of the Balance	p. 63
The Accidental Astronomer	p. 67
At Home with Toxicology: A Career Evolves	p. 73
Geological Consulting and Kids: An Unpredictable Balancing Act?	p. 79
Career Scientists and the Shared Academic Position	p. 83
1990s	p. 89
Less Pay, a Little Less Work	p. 93
Reflections of a Female Scientist with Outside Interests	p. 98
Part-Time at a National Laboratory: A Split Life	p. 102
The Eternal Quest for Balance: A Career in Five Acts, No Intermission	p. 108
Reflections on Motherhood and Science	p. 113
The Benefits of Four-Dumbbell Support	p. 117
Extraordinary Commitments of Time and Energy	p. 121
Finding My Way Back to the Bench: An Unexpectedly Satisfying Destination	p. 125
Mothering Primates	p. 130
Finding the Right Balance, Personal and Professional, as a Mother in Science	p. 135
What? I Don't Need a PhD to Potty-Train My Children?	p. 140
Variety, Challenge, and Flexibility: The Benefits of Straying from the Narrow Path	p. 145
The Balancing Act	p. 148
Juggling through Life's Transitions	p. 153
Having It All, Just Not All at the Same Time	p. 156
2000s	p. 163
Exploring Less-Traveled Paths	p. 167
Standing Up	p. 172
Because of Our Mom, a True Rocket Scientist	p. 177
On Being What You Love	p. 183
Parsimony Is What We Are Taught, Not What We Live	p. 187
Role Models: Out with the Old and In with the New	p. 194
Pursing Science and Motherhood	p. 199
Conclusion	p. 203
Contributors	p. 209
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