Follow Up: Scientists Are Made, Not Born

Those of you interested in my earlier "Women in Science" post may want to read the following Op-Ed from The New York Times: Scientists Are Made, Not Born or this article from the AP filled with data on differences between the sexes.

The authors (of both articles) don't look at women in higher positions in scientific academia, such at the percentage of full professors or department heads that are female. These numbers are growing much more slowly than the percentage earning masters or doctorates.

Also, regarding the second article, I think (a minor component of) the differences may be genetic, but are more likely environmental. Parents and schools need to encourage young girls to get excited about science and math. I know I have a science bias, but I think 1 full year each of chemistry, physics, and biology should be required for all high school students. If I remember my high school days correctly, you could get away with only one semester of intro biology and one semester of intro physical science. How will we fill the need for the high-tech jobs of the 21st century which increasingly require a solid background in match, science, and computers. Bill Gates just addressed the nation's governors (read the story here) and told them we need major reform in high school education to prepare our children for a 21st century job. He makes a good point.

What's Secretly Wrong With Kansas

What's Secretly Wrong With Kansas

Read the above article about the Attorney General in Kansas invading medical privacy in cases of abortion. It's scary. I'm of the opinion that whatever you tell your doctor (or lawyer or minister) should be private, especially in these cases. The exception of course should be if you are about to go kill someone or blow up a building. The "crime" of statutory rape does not meet this threshold of severity in my opinion.

Women are extremely vulnerable if they are approaching a doctor for an abortion. We don't want people to avoid a trained physician and seek less safe alternatives to abortion just because their privacy isn't protected.

What I learned from the Oscars

• I guess I should have gone to Million Dollar Baby instead of The Aviator this weekend.
• Penélope Cruz and Salma Hayek ARE in fact two different people. Confusing.
• Chris Rock can do family-friendly comedy well, but Robin Williams does it better.
• Ouch, sorry Jude Law...I guess you suck at acting.
• Shrek 2 got robbed. Brutal.
• Antonio Banderas can sing...not too well, but he probably would have made it into American Idol.

Red Carpet

A few reflections from the Red Carpet Pre-Show:

Hilary Swank: You look like a nun. Who chose that dress? Oh wait, someone stole the back half of your dress.

Halle Berry: Do something with your hair.

Laura Linney: Wash your hair.

Pre-Oscar Predictions

I saw The Aviator last night and Ray today. They were good movies, but not outstanding. The Aviator had good acting and was visually stunning but was too long. Ray had great music (obviously), and Jamie Fox was great, but the script and cinematography left something to be desired.

I do think these two will do well tonight because I feel the bar is pretty low this year. I'm pretty clueless for the remaining nominees. That being said, here, in bold, are my predictions:

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Don Cheadle - HOTEL RWANDA
Johnny Depp - FINDING NEVERLAND
Leonardo DiCaprio - THE AVIATOR
Clint Eastwood - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Jamie Foxx - RAY

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Alan Alda - THE AVIATOR
Thomas Haden Church - SIDEWAYS
Jamie Foxx - COLLATERAL
Morgan Freeman - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Clive Owen - CLOSER

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Annette Bening - BEING JULIA
Catalina Sandino Moreno - MARIA FULL OF GRACE
Imelda Staunton - VERA DRAKE
Hilary Swank - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Kate Winslet - ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Cate Blanchett - THE AVIATOR
Laura Linney - KINSEY
Virginia Madsen - SIDEWAYS
Sophie Okonedo - HOTEL RWANDA
Natalie Portman - CLOSER

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
THE INCREDIBLES
SHARK TALE
SHREK 2

ART DIRECTION
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT

CINEMATOGRAPHY
THE AVIATOR
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT

COSTUME DESIGN
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
RAY
TROY

DIRECTING
THE AVIATOR
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
SIDEWAYS
VERA DRAKE

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
BORN INTO BROTHELS
THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL
SUPER SIZE ME
TUPAC: RESURRECTION
TWIST OF FAITH

FILM EDITING
THE AVIATOR
COLLATERAL
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY

MAKEUP
LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE SEA INSIDE

MUSIC (SCORE)
FINDING NEVERLAND
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN
LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE VILLAGE

MUSIC (SONG)
"Accidentally In Love" - SHREK 2
"Al Otro Lado Del Río" - THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES
"Believe" - THE POLAR EXPRESS
"Learn To Be Lonely" - THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
"Look To Your Path (Vois Sur Ton Chemin)" - THE CHORUS

BEST PICTURE
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
SIDEWAYS

VISUAL EFFECTS
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN
I, ROBOT
SPIDER-MAN 2

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
BEFORE SUNSET
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES
SIDEWAYS

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
THE AVIATOR
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
HOTEL RWANDA
THE INCREDIBLES
VERA DRAKE

Blockbuster

So I went to Blockbuster to rent Ray in order to see it before the Oscars tonight, and there was this ten year old boy asking the check out lady where he could find Grand Theft Auto, a video game famous for its violence and sexually explicit content. I was glad to hear her tell the kid he couldn't rent that game without his mom being there. He ended up choosing another game. Way to go blockbuster lady.

Women in Science

The president of Harvard got into trouble for proposing that there may be a difference (in ability) between men and women that explains why there are so few women in high positions in science. Some people, especially a few female scientists, are outraged and demand that he resign.

My feeling (being a woman entering the world of science myself) is that there have been many gains for women in science. We definitely need to encourage young girls to get excited about math and science, but claiming discrimination doesn't seen right when grad schools and medical schools are about evenly populated with male and female students. The disparity does exist when one sees few females attaining positions as full professor or heads of academic departments in the sciences. This could be discrimination, but is more likely the result of females deciding to balance family and work, at the cost of their own scientific advancement. I don't think that's a bad thing. Everyone (man or woman) has to decide how much of themselves to devote to work, family, friends, and other interests. That's an inevitable part of life, and some people are better at achieving balance than others.

Another thing, why get angry at someone for bringing up what could be a real difference between men and women? Shouldn't a university setting be the perfect place for such a debate, or have we gotten so politically correct that we can't point out any difference between one group of people and another without the PC police freaking out? Let me be clear, I don't think women are less capable than men in science. In fact, women may have better communication between the analytical and creative parts of their brain that could make them better than men at asking scientific questions and putting results into a larger context. That's just an opinion based on differences in neuroanatomy. The point is, differences could exist. Men and women are different in everything from their anatomy to their molecular physiology. Let's not try to pretend otherwise.

That's all for now...I have some real science to do. Tell me what YOU think!

More commentary from the Washington Post is available here:
Missing The Point At Harvard by Anne Applebaum
Washington Post; Wednesday, February 23, 2005; Page A19

David in India

My brother David is in India to hear the teachings of the Dalai Lama. I encourage you to read the updates he has sent home which are posted on his blog.

Pope Joke

Since the Pope is felling better; I think it's ok to post this joke that I found on WWW.JOKES.COM:

Long Live the Pope

The Pope dies and, naturally, goes to heaven. He's met by the reception committee and, after a whirlwind tour is told that he can enjoy any of the myriad recreations available.

He decides that he wants to read all of the ancient original text of the Holy Scriptures, and spends the next eon or so learning the languages. After becoming a linguistics master, he sits down in the library and begins to pore over every version of the Bible, working back from the most recent 'Easy Reading' to the original script.

All of a sudden there is a scream in the library. The angels come running to him, only to find the Pope huddled in a chair, crying to himself, and muttering, 'An 'R'! They left out the 'R'.

God takes him aside, offering comfort and asks him what the problem is. After collecting his wits, the Pope sobs again, 'It's the letter 'R'... the word was supposed to be CELEBRATE'

money money money money...money

My cat Audrey with my new Harrah's beads and my new friend, Mr. Ben Franklin

This weekend's big highlight was going to Harrah's and winning some cash, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Here's how it went down. I got a voucher in my mailbox at work for some free tickets to the improv comedy show at Harrah's. So, I went with Jess and Brian, and we saw a pretty funny show with 3 B-list comics. After, we decided to play the slots for a bit. (If you play for a half hour, the parking's free.) I started out at the nickel slots and lost $5. Then we moved to the quarter slots, and I hit the big 7 7 7 twice! I decided to quit while I was ahead and left having kept the $40 I went in with and adding a little over $100 to it! We then went out for celebratory drinks after at St. Joe's. It was great. I could see how people get into problems because winning is so much fun.

I decided to take the photo with Audrey in it because she wasn't anywhere on my blog, and she should be.

Debate not Da battle

Koranic duels ease terror: "In Yemen, a theological contest cools Al Qaeda hotbed."
What a great story. It seems that sitting down with terrorists and listening to their view of Islam that justifies terrorism, followed by showing them the parts or the Koran that teach tolerance and nonviolence, actually converts terrorists into pro-democracy, freedom-loving, peaceful people. This put in the context of this week's Israeli-Palestinian advancements leaves me very optimistic about peace in our world.

The dialogue in Yemen reminds me very much of another man who has worked to convert those who hate by first trying to understand them. Daryl Davis, who tells his story in Klan-Destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan, met some Klan members after performing Jazz piano. He decides to meet more members and attempts to understand their hatred. To make a long story short, it turns out that Davis, through conversation and mutual understanding, has convinced several Klan members to quit the KKK.

It just goes to show that even the most evil forms of hate are just a result of a lack of understanding.

Anyone need some beads?

The Yoda float was great.

I survived my first Mardi Gras here in NOLA. Hold on...more after I go get a cup of coffee.

OK, I'm back. Carnival was so much fun. The parades were great. The floats and costumes were amazing, and I caught a ton of beads. Bourbon Street was crazy as expected. The crowd was huge, but I'm told not as big as in years past since Mardi Gras fell early in Feb. this year. Not surprisingly, alcohol was consumed, and beads were thrown.

Just watching the crowd was fascinating. Don’t worry Mom, I got all my beads at the parades, not on Bourbon Street.

A big highlight for me was during the Bacchus parade on Sunday. Elijah Wood (he starred in The Lord of the Rings movies) made eye contact with me and threw me some beads, which I caught! It was great.

Elijah Wood

SOTU, Initial Reaction

I enjoyed the pep rally that always is the State of the Union. If you missed it; you can read it here, or read my summary: Freedom and democracy are good. Terrorism is bad. Healthcare and opportunity are good. Wasteful spending is bad. Elections in Iraq are good; dependence on foreign oil is bad. Building a better world for kids is great; the complicated tax code is bad; NIH funding is important...etc.

I never know what to make of Bush. He seems to see things in black and white; and he's definitely ambitious and determined to see peace in Iraq and Israel. If he can pull it off, he'll be remembered as a great President who spread freedom throughout the world. If not, he'll be remembered as an arrogant stubborn prick who got us into the second Vietnam.

The Social Security plan sounds good. I' d like to think I'll be able to see some of the money I'm paying into the system, and I'm a big believer in personal responsibility and ownership in one's own future. It's likely Washington obstructionists will take over, and the Democrats will never let him set up individual accounts, but we'll see.

I do strongly disagree with Bush on amending the constitution to prohibit gay marriage, but I doubt such an amendment would ever seriously move forward. Mentioning it in 3 sentences is solely for purposes of pandering to the right wing of his party. I noticed Laura Bush did NOT applaud after Bush mentioned the amendment.

The most touching moment (see photo below) was when the mom of Marine Corps Sergeant Byron Norwood, who was killed in Iraq, was embraced by an Iraqi woman who just exercised new freedom by voting in the recent election. It's nice to know that there are people who are grateful and thankful for the sacrifice America is making for the freedom of others.



Janet Norwood, right, of Pfugerville, Texas whose son was killed in Iraq (news - web sites) last year, hugs Safia Taleb al-Suhail, leader of the Iraqi Women's Political Council, during the State of the Union address Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2005, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

get ready to feel socially secure

I have a feeling Social Security might be mentioned tonight:

Poll shows Bush support on Social Security

Bush Speech Sets Sights on Social Security

Be sure to watch the State of the Union tonight; I'm sure I'll have something to say about it later.

Medical Bills

Yahoo! News - Half of Bankruptcy Due to Medical Bills -- U.S. Study: "Half of all U.S. bankruptcies are caused by soaring medical bills and most people sent into debt by illness are middle-class workers with health insurance, researchers said on Wednesday. "

What a sad statistic.
I found this to be amazing, but not surprising.
I guess this is more motivation to stay healthy!
I can only hope there will be some much needed reform of the health care system to fix this problem....hopefully before I start practicing medicine.

Drug prices, doctors leaving their specialties, lawsuits causing defensive medicine, expensive new technology, nursing shortages, etc. What a mess!

If you wan to learn more, you can read some plans to fix the problem from http://www.physiciansproposal.org/ or http://www.pnhp.org/.

Rainy Day

I'm a little bummed that it's raining in New Orleans today, and for the rest of the week it seems. Hopefully it will clear up for this weekend's festivities. In the mean time, I thought I should educate myself, and this blog's readers, about some of the history, terminology, balls, krewes, parades, and costumes of Carnival and Mardi Gras since this is my first Mardi Gras in NOLA.