Rita Colwell is a pioneering microbiologist whose work on cholera helped illuminate the interplay between the environment and public health. She was also the first woman to serve as director of the National Science Foundation, and is currently a Distinguished University Professor at both the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins Universitys Bloomberg School of Public Health.
In her half-century-plus in the sciences, Colwell has also seen very clearly the array of obstacles confronted by women as they try to navigate a traditionally male world. (When she applied for a graduate fellowship in bacteriology, she says was told, We dont waste fellowships on women.)
A Lab of Ones Own: One Womans Personal Journey Through Sexism in Science, by Rita Colwell and Sharon Bertsch McGrayne (Simon & Schuster, 288 pages).
Colwells new book, A Lab of Ones Own, co-authored with writer Sharon Bertsch McGrayne, documents much of what she has seen and heard over the years, from sexual harassment to the invisible structural obstacles placed in the way of women working in the sciences. (The books subtitle is One Womans Personal Journey Through Sexism in Science.)
Not long ago, women were discouraged from studying science at all; those who did pursue such studies were seen as oddities. Later, when the numbers of women earning science degrees began to rise, they found themselves receiving less funding than their male colleagues, and less likely to land a position as a professor or a lab director. (It wasnt that long ago, Colwell recalls, when a grant application could be turned down because a man on the granting committee simply didnt like women scientists.) But Colwell also found allies along the way, and her book is something of a celebration of what can be achieved when science strives for inclusivity.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
UNDARK: Though sexism has a long history, you write that the 1950s and 60s saw unprecedented levels of sexism in the sciences. What was going on at that time?
Rita Colwell: The attitude was, a woman worked in the home period. A woman couldnt even get a credit card in her own name; she had to have her husband, or her father, vouch for her. In general, the understanding was, if you were [a woman] interested in science, that was peculiar. It wasnt unusual for women to go to college but most did not go from there into any kind of work, unless it was nursing or teaching. It was a very limiting time, for women. A lot of this was unspoken; it was just sort of assumed.
UD: Regarding graduate education, you say that women were simply seen as not worth investing in. What does that mean?
RC: The expectation was that you would get married and have children. If you werent there, with your children, you were seen as a bad mother. You went to college to find a husband; that was the expectation.
UD: You point out that not only could one face obstacles for being a woman Ph.D. student, you could face a backlash if you supervised too many women Ph.D. students. What was that about?
RC: The assumption was that anyone who was really brilliant, with great ideas, would work for a male professor. So if you took women students, it was assumed they werent the best and the brightest. Having women students would mark you as not serious; your students were just going to get married, and youre just wasting all this time.
UD: As you say, a lot of this was unspoken but eventually there was solid data to quantify this discrimination. How did that come about?
RC: It was in the 90s that Nancy Hopkins at MIT carried out her now-famous experiment: She measured the labs, and discovered that the men had almost twice as much space; they also got the bulk of the research money. More women were entering these careers [in the sciences], but men got most of the funding and most of the space.
Later, Jo Handelsman did the experiment where they sent identical letters to male researchers [from recent graduates applying to be a lab manager], the only difference was that some were signed John and others were signed Jennifer. The question was, would you hire this person, and what would you pay them? Far fewer said they would hire the woman; and the salary they were prepared to offer was much, much lower.
But Id like to emphasize one thing: Once I was able to break through, at each stage of my career, there was tremendous support. My father was very education-minded; it didnt matter if you were a girl or a boy; everyone went to school. My husband, a physicist, was a fantastic supporter; we were married for 62 very happy years. And my Ph.D. supervisor, John Liston, was absolutely the best. He was a newcomer to the University of Washington, starting a new program in marine microbiology so I ended up being the first graduate student with a Ph.D. in marine microbiology, possibly in the whole United States.
The assumption was that anyone who was really brilliant, with great ideas, would work for a male professor. So if you took women students, it was assumed they werent the best and the brightest.
UD: Youre known for your groundbreaking work on cholera, but it was also fascinating to read about your work investigating the 2001 anthrax attacks, in which a number of politicians and journalists were mailed packages containing the deadly substance in the weeks following the 9/11 attacks. How did you end up on the front lines of that investigation?
RC: I was appointed [as director of the National Science Foundation] by Bill Clinton, and I served two years under Clinton and four under George W. Bush. In October or November [of 2001], we heard about anthrax attacks. I remember saying, Weve got to sequence that bacterium, or well never know who did it.
I had been working on an advisory board for the CIA, so I was able to call on some colleagues, and we formed an inter-agency group. We decided not to make the group official, so that we could keep it a secret. And we worked for five years on this classified project. And using molecular genetics, we tracked down the source. Now, well never know whether the perpetrator was in fact Bruce Ivins, and if he worked alone, or with others. [Ivins died in 2008.] He was an anthrax microbiologist, and the source turned out to be in his lab.
UD: You were using a computer in the late 1950s, long before they became ubiquitous in the life sciences. Did you have a sense that computers would eventually impact every branch of science?
RC: At the University of Washington, I wrote a computer program the first in the country, for bacteriology using the old IBM 650, which has less power than the chip in your microwave oven. When I was working with that computer, I had to program it, and I didnt know diddly. But in my husbands lab, there was a postdoc named George Constabaris, who taught me. And there was another chap who was using the IBM to do pipe-fitting for the ships in Seattle harbor. He was programming how to cut and fit pipe most efficiently.
So it was clear to me that this was an amazing tool. I used the computer for taxonomic purposes, for identification which now everybody does. Its amusing I used to give talks about species of bacteria, and people would yawn. But now the hotshots in Silicon Valley know the differences between different kinds of bacteria. It was clear to me that we had to have massive computation [in the sciences]. I was able to get into the NSF budget, over my term, $2 billion, for computation, for universities to start building the internet railway, so to speak.
UD: So much has changed in science, and in the culture of science, over your career. Today, are you optimistic or at least, more optimistic?
RC: I would say its cautious optimism. I dont know whats going to happen in the next administration; it could be a disaster for women. I strongly encourage girls to go into science. I abhor the assumption that girls cant do math; its absurd. Or that if youre African American you cant do math or you cant do science its crazy. Theres still sexism, which ranges from the criminal to the clueless. Like when someone comments to a woman scientist as shes going up to the podium to give a talk, that she looks attractive. Thats the last thing you want to hear. You want to hear Thats a great idea, or Can we collaborate on the next stage of this experiment?
Read the original:
The Undark Interview: A Conversation with Rita Colwell - Undark Magazine
- Comparing Genetics and Molecular Genetics: What's the Difference? - December 19th, 2024
- Standards and guidelines for the interpretation of sequence ... - PubMed - December 19th, 2024
- Chapter 12: Techniques of Molecular Genetics - Biology LibreTexts - December 19th, 2024
- 8.S: Techniques of Molecular Genetics (Summary) - December 19th, 2024
- Master of Science Computational Biology and Quantitative Genetics - December 19th, 2024
- Pitt Researchers Lead Group that Calls for Global Discussion About Possible Risks from Mirror Bacteria - Pitt Health Sciences - December 19th, 2024
- Molecular Genetics Testing - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf - November 16th, 2024
- Working with Molecular Genetics (Hardison) - Biology LibreTexts - November 16th, 2024
- Molecular Underpinnings of Genetic and Rare Diseases: From ... - Frontiers - November 16th, 2024
- The molecular genetics of schizophrenia: New findings promise new insights. - November 16th, 2024
- 8: Techniques of Molecular Genetics - Biology LibreTexts - September 4th, 2024
- 1.5: Molecular Genetics - Biology LibreTexts - September 4th, 2024
- Molecular genetics made simple - PMC - National Center for ... - September 4th, 2024
- 4 Introduction to Molecular Genetics - University of Minnesota Twin Cities - September 4th, 2024
- Molecular genetics - Definition and Examples - Biology Online - September 4th, 2024
- A Detailed Look at the Science of Molecular Genetics - KnowYourDNA - September 4th, 2024
- Molecular Genetics | NHLBI, NIH - September 4th, 2024
- Molecular biology - Wikipedia - September 4th, 2024
- Genetics, Molecular & Cellular Biology Admissions - September 4th, 2024
- Researchers map 50,000 of DNAs mysterious knots in the human genome - EurekAlert - September 4th, 2024
- Artificial selection of mutations in two nearby genes gave rise to shattering resistance in soybean - Nature.com - September 4th, 2024
- Mainz Biomed Expands Corporate Health Program for ColoAlert with the Addition of Three New Companies in Germany - Marketscreener.com - April 7th, 2023
- Molecular Genetics and Metabolism | Journal - ScienceDirect - December 11th, 2022
- People don't mate randomly but the flawed assumption that they do is an essential part of many studies linking genes to diseases and traits - The... - November 25th, 2022
- Molecular and Cell Biology and Genetics - Master of Science / PhD ... - October 7th, 2022
- NIPD Genetics: Leading Genetic Testing Company - October 7th, 2022
- Skeletal Biology and Regeneration Students Recognized For Research Excellence - UConn Today - University of Connecticut - October 7th, 2022
- Mary Munson elected fellow of the American Society for Cell Biology - UMass Medical School - October 7th, 2022
- Every Body's Talking at Them: an Interview with Jon Lieff - CounterPunch - October 7th, 2022
- TriBeta invites students to explore opportunities to work with faculty at research fair on Oct. 11 - Ohio University - October 7th, 2022
- Genetics: the Vatican Does Not Intend to Be Behind the Times - FSSPX.News - October 7th, 2022
- Yield10 Bioscience Appoints Willie Loh, Ph.D., to the Board of Directors - citybiz - October 7th, 2022
- Molecular pathways of major depressive disorder converge on the synapse | Molecular Psychiatry - Nature.com - October 7th, 2022
- Sigyn Therapeutics Strengthens Board of Directors With the Appointments of Richa Nand, Jim Dorst and Christopher Wetzel - Yahoo Finance - October 7th, 2022
- UTHSC Researcher Co-Leads Study of Genes that Modulate Aging, Lifespan - UTHSC News - UTHSC News - October 7th, 2022
- GATC Health Investor Conference to Feature First Public Demonstration of Its AI Platform's Drug Discovery Capabilities - PR Newswire - October 7th, 2022
- Three Professors Conferred Tenure and Eleven Promoted - Wesleyan Argus - October 7th, 2022
- Who will get the call from Stockholm? It's time for STAT's 2022 Nobel Prize predictions - STAT - October 7th, 2022
- Dalhousie to present exhibition celebrating Gerhard Herzberg and his legacy - Dal News - October 7th, 2022
- Why Some People Should Rethink Their Morning Cup Of Coffee - Health Digest - October 7th, 2022
- Cell and Gene Therapy: Rewriting the Future of Medicine - Technology Networks - October 7th, 2022
- UofL researchers lead the call to increase genetic diversity in immunogenomics - uoflnews.com - July 6th, 2021
- In Brief This Week: Foundation Medicine, Myriad Genetics, Genetron Health, and More - GenomeWeb - July 6th, 2021
- More filling? Tastes great? How flies, and maybe people, choose their food - Yale News - July 6th, 2021
- Genetic mapping of subsets of patients with fragile X syndro | TACG - Dove Medical Press - July 6th, 2021
- What is The Babydust Method? Danielle Lloyd swears method helped her conceive girl - The Mirror - July 6th, 2021
- Datar Cancer Genetics joins hands with US based Iylon Precision Oncology to offer personalized Precision Oncology cancer treatment solutions - PR Web - July 6th, 2021
- Mapping a pathway to competitive production - hortidaily.com - hortidaily.com - July 6th, 2021
- Associations between pancreatic expression quantitative traits and risk of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. - Physician's Weekly - July 6th, 2021
- Global Genomics Market | Rising Incidence of Chronic and Genetic Diseases are Key Factors to Grow Market During 2021-2029 | 23andMe, Agilent... - July 6th, 2021
- The Babydust Method Danielle Lloyd used to conceive a girl after four sons and how it works - RSVP Live - July 6th, 2021
- In the beginning science and faith - The Irish Times - June 24th, 2021
- Ancient Maya Maintained Native Tropical Forest Plants around Their Water Reservoirs | Archaeology - Sci-News.com - June 24th, 2021
- Local foundation awards $1.25 million to MIND Institute to study rare genetic condition - UC Davis Health - June 24th, 2021
- Xlife Sciences AG: Collaboration with the University of Marburg - Yahoo Finance - June 24th, 2021
- Genetics diagnostics in India is on the verge of transformation: Neeraj Gupta, Founder and CEO of Genes2me - The Financial Express - June 24th, 2021
- Precision Medicine: Improving Health With Personalized Solutions - BioSpace - June 24th, 2021
- Half of Portland areas 22 top National Merit winners hail from just 2 schools - OregonLive - June 24th, 2021
- Investing in stem cells, the building blocks of the body - MoneyWeek - June 24th, 2021
- New study finds low levels of a sugar metabolite associates with disability and neurodegeneration in multiple sclerosis - Newswise - May 14th, 2021
- Cernadas-Martn Is a Champion for Marine and Human Diversity | | SBU News - Stony Brook News - May 14th, 2021
- Four Penn Faculty: Election to the National Academy of Sciences - UPENN Almanac - May 14th, 2021
- Is there a difference between a gene-edited organism and a 'GMO'? The question has important implications for regulation - Genetic Literacy Project - May 14th, 2021
- 5 Students Inducted Into American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Honor Society - Wesleyan Connection - May 14th, 2021
- The Science of Aliens, Part 2: What Kind of Genetic Code Would Extraterrestrials Have? - Air & Space Magazine - May 14th, 2021
- UT Austin Faculty Member Receives 2021 Piper Professor Award - Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost - UT News | The University of Texas... - May 14th, 2021
- Distinguished University of Birmingham plant scientist elected to the Royal Society - University of Birmingham - May 14th, 2021
- Double Hoo Research: Undergrads and Grads Team Up to Create Knowledge - University of Virginia - May 14th, 2021
- Global Genetic Testing Market Top Countries Analysis and Manufacturers With Impact of COVID-19 | 2021-2028 Detail Analysis focusing on Application,... - May 14th, 2021
- Morag Park named to the Order of Quebec - McGill Reporter - McGill Reporter - May 14th, 2021
- Third Rock Ventures Launches Flare Therapeutics With $82 Million Series A - BioSpace - May 14th, 2021
- The Royal Society announces election of new Fellows 2021 - Cambridge Network - May 14th, 2021
- Researchers Decode the "Language" of Immune Cells - Technology Networks - May 14th, 2021
- RepliCel Launches the Next Stage of a Research Project with the University of British Columbia to Build World-Class Hair Follicle Cell Data Map -... - May 14th, 2021
- Mice Sperm Sabotage Other Swimmers With Poison | Smart News - Smithsonian Magazine - February 14th, 2021
- Study Identifies Never-Before-Seen Dual Function in Enzyme Critical for Cancer Growth - Newswise - February 14th, 2021
- Devious sperm 'poison' their rivals, forcing them to swim in circles until they die - Livescience.com - February 14th, 2021
- More needs to be done to find and fight COVID-19 variants, says Colorado researcher - FOX 31 Denver - February 14th, 2021
- Selfish sperm genes 'poison' the competition for the win - Big Think - February 14th, 2021
- Some sperm cells swim faster and even poison their competition to climb to the top - ZME Science - February 14th, 2021