NPR: '80s Ads Are Responsible For the Lack of Women Coders

gollum123 writes: Back in the day, computer science was as legitimate a career path for women as medicine, law, or science. But in 1984, the number of women majoring in computing-related subjects began to fall, and the percentage of women is now significantly lower in CS than in those other fields. NPR's Planet Money sought to answer a simple question: Why? According to the show's experts, computers were advertised as a "boy's toy." This, combined with early '80s geek culture staples like the book Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution, as well as movies like War Games and Weird Science, conspired to instill the perception that computers were primarily for men.

Comments

1..2..3 before SJW

[sinij]

In before SJW brigade comes in demanding everyone involved apologized.

Re:1..2..3 before SJW

[Anonymous Coward]

In before SJW brigade comes in demanding everyone involved apologized.

wow, you anti-SJW people really got your knickers in a bunch don't you. Leave it to America to came up with stirring anger against social justice, and use it pro-actively as a straw-man in any debate.

Re:Can we stop trying to come up with a reason?

[i kan reed]

It could be that it was a contextless copy-past spam post that doesn't even begin to address what I actually said.

I mean, maybe redundant would've been a better mod, but your agenda doesn't justify crappy posts.

Re:Can we stop trying to come up with a reason?

[i kan reed]

And here's your "It's not sexism because [pile of blantantly and boringly sexist beliefs]" post that you can't seem to avoid in these discussions. That it's in direct contradiction to much more scientific observations about how society and sexual roles interact that I posted is just icing.

Re:Can we stop trying to come up with a reason?

[ShieldW0lf]

Men and women both contribute to creating people.

A mans contribution can be completed in a single night.

A womans contribution requires 9 months, during which time any distraction, disruption or stress can cause the "person creation" process to fail catastrophically.

This is the reason we systematically transform men into specialists instead of men. It is a waste of precious resources to turn a woman into a computer programmer when she's a lot more valuable as a mother.

It's not that women are incapable of being computer programmers. It's that they have more important duties, and when they neglect those duties, the entire human race suffers for it.

At the end of the day, the problem is people like you, who don't care about the fate of the human race as long as you get what you want out of life before you die, and, frankly, the solution is NOT diplomatic in nature.

Re:Can we stop trying to come up with a reason?

[PopeRatzo]

but lose the guilt-tripping SJW faux indignation BS.

I bet you care deeply about ethics in gaming journalism.

So, NPR thinks women are impressionable idiots...

[Karmashock]

I love how they're always saying women are equals to men... and then saying they're complete half wits or incompetent about something.

Its really sort of weird.

Look, if women are the equal of men, and for the record I believe they are, then they don't need to be coddled or shown special treatment beyond what men get.

So that is the logical trap that is pretty fucking inescapable here.

Either women are inferior or they don't need your help.

Pick one.

I pick option 2. Its called being an adult and taking responsibility for yourself.

Why didn't women get into coding? Because they didn't want to.

Coding is a solitary job with long hours that gives no shits anything besides if the code is good. Yes you can code in groups... but that's only with division of labor and once labor is divided you are working on your code yourself.

What is more, the coding all stars are always mad geniuses in the field that put insane hours into honing their craft. Would be sexist to point out that women don't seem to find that kind of work appealing?

And another thing, consider how many one man shops there are out there. How many one woman independent coders are there out there? Many of these companies get started in a dorm room or a garage with their moms doing laundry behind them or something. Discrimination? The bar is so low that anyone can get into this so long as they're willing and able to do the work.

If you lack the will or the ability... then that is why you're not a successful coder. Period.

And here some one is going to say "you can't just say period"... well yes I can... I just did... after a long argument that had a lot of supporting points and I summed it all up with a closing argument and then said period. Think I'm wrong? Tell me how women can be both our equals and in need of special treatment. Your brain will literally explode in raspberry jam all over the walls if you try to divide by zero by saying both of those things can happen. They can't. The logic is inescapable. Either they're just girls and inferior and thus deserving of protection... or they're adults, our equals, and don't need it anymore then anyone else.