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Suffrage science Contents Introduction Brenda Maddox and Vivienne Parry on sex and success in science 3 Love Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore and Dr Helen Fisher on love and social cognition 6 Life Professor Liz Robertson and Dr Sohaila Rastan on developmental biology and genetics 10 Structure Professor Dame Louise Johnson and Professor Janet Thornton on structural biology 15 Strife Professors Fiona Watt and Mary Collins on cancer and AIDS 19 Suffrage Heirloom Jewellery Designs to commemorate women in science 23 Suffrage Textiles Ribbons referencing the suffrage movement 33 Index of Featured Women Scientists Pioneering female contributions to Life Science 43 Acknowledgements Contributions and partnerships 47 Tracing Suffrage Heirlooms Follow the provenance of 13 pieces of Suffrage Heirloom Jewellery 48 1 A successful career in science is always demanding of intellect “ hard work and resilience; only more so for most women. ” Professor Dame Sally C Davies From top, left to right: (Row 1) Anne McLaren, Barbara McClintock, Beatrice Hahn, Mina Bissell, Brenda Maddox, Dorothy Hodgkin, (Row 2) Brigid Hogan, Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard, Fiona Watt, Gail Martin, Helen Fisher, Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, (Row 3) Hilde Mangold, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Blackburn, Janet Thornton, Carol Greider, Rosalind Franklin, (Row 4) Kathleen Lonsdale, Liz Robertson, Louise Johnson, Mary Lyon, Mary Collins, Vivienne Parry, (Row 5) Uta Frith, Amanda Fisher, Linda Buck, Sara-Jayne Blakemore, Sohaila Rastan, Zena Werb 2 Introduction To commemorate 100 years of International Women’s Day in 2011, Suffrage Science unites the voices of leading female life scientists Brona McVittie talks to Vivienne Parry and Brenda Maddox about sex and success in science Dorothy Hodgkin remains the only British woman to Brenda Maddox is author of The Dark Lady of DNA, have been awarded a Nobel Prize for science. She which documents the story of Rosalind Franklin, worked out the structure of penicillin, insulin and whose expertise in the field of X-ray crystallography vitamin B12 and made an immeasurable contribution provided critical proof of the structure of the DNA to human health as a result. double-helix, an achievement that led to a Nobel Prize for James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins But when her award was announced in 1964, the in 1962. Daily Mail reported it with the headline: “Oxford housewife wins Nobel”. Feminism has since done Vivienne Parry is a broadcaster and prolific journalist, much to challenge such overt prejudice about women’s who has simultaneously written for the News of the place in society, but does a subtle, subversive sexism World and the Journal of Molecular Cell Biology. She still exist in science today? broadcasts regularly on BBC Radio 4 and writes for The Times and Guardian. She is a former presenter of While the discipline was formerly a gentleman’s Britain’s iconic science show ‘Tomorrow’s World’. pastime, over the last century many more women have been able to pursue scientific careers than before. So Perhaps men and women approach their careers why is a man still six times more likely to work in a differently. “I think women like to work with other science, engineering, or technology profession than people,” suggests Brenda. “The loneliness and a woman1, despite the fact that women make up just the abstraction of science can be less appealing to under half of the UK workforce? women, whereas in medicine, they can use scientific abilities but do something to help people more We talked to a sample of leading female researchers directly, and be in contact with others. Science seems in Life Science along with communicators that have a bit impersonal.” helped to publicise the work of women scientists. This publication highlights the achievements of pioneering Vivienne agrees, but adds that, “Women are making women over the past 100 years touching on some of a lot of progress in some areas of science, but not the issues that they face in science today. others. We don’t tend to do subjects like engineering and physics. And I think that’s partly a confidence issue. Though in biology, there’s a huge proportion of 1Women and men in science, engineering and technology: the UKRC Statistics Guide 2010 women, and in psychology, it’s all women.” 3 There’s a generation of women growing up now that simply “ don’t have any expectation that they’ll be stopped. ” More women are doing science now than ever before, Commemorating women through the arts but they still make up less than a fifth of the scientific workforce. The discrepancy is most marked at the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design top, where less than a tenth of UK professors in has pioneered a collection of jewellery and textiles science, technology, engineering and mathematics to commemorate and promote women in science. are women1. Family life is the obvious reason for Inspired by the suffrage movement, which fought for dropping out, but the problem is women are not equal voting rights at the start of the last century, returning to science. the collection echoes women’s struggle to get their voice heard. However, it’s not all bad news. More young women are choosing science at secondary level, a few more Students taking BA Jewellery and Textile Design are taking scientific degrees and there’s an increase degrees at Central Saint Martins have created in the number entering related research fields. Yet in bespoke heirlooms for women scientists to wear. an age dominated by celebrity culture, the changing These are featured on pages 25–42. After a year, values of fame and fortune take their toll on young jewellery will be passed on to the next generation of women and their aspirations. female scientists. Track their progress on page 48. So, would young women today rather be sexy Based on the students’ design work, leading ribbon celebrities or change the world? “Both!” resound manufacturer, VV Rouleaux, is producing a series Brenda and Vivienne simultaneously. “Look at Latin of commemorative ribbons for women scientists. America,” urges Brenda. “Half the presidents are Referencing the suffrage movement – using green for female. Things are changing, and changing fast. In hope, white for purity and purple for dignity – ribbons the next decade the figures will be quite different.” will unite women across scientific professions. Ribbons will be available to purchase from: 1Women and men in science, engineering and technology: the UKRC Statistics Guide 2010 www.vvrouleaux.com 4 LOVE & Life 5 LOVE Sarah-Jayne Blakemore Helen Fisher Dr Ruth Williams interviews Professor Sarah-Jayne Blakemore and Dr Helen Fisher about brains, behaviours, books and babies Helen Fisher is an expert on love. She is a Research day she travels to her office at the Institute of Professor in the Department of Anthropology Cognitive Neuroscience in Queen Square, London. at Rutgers University in New Jersey, and has There, she is a Royal Society University Research published scientific articles on topics ranging from Fellow, a Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience, and romantic behaviour and the neural mechanisms leads the Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience of mate choice, to functional brain imaging of Group. people in love. Her group’s research focuses on social cognition She lives on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and – that is, how humans understand the actions, from her home office has written five books on intentions and emotions of others – and she subjects such as love, sex, relationships, and is particularly interested in how this works in adultery. She is also the Chief Scientific Officer adolescents, people with schizophrenia, and people for the online dating company, Chemistry.com, a with autism spectrum disorders. She has published subsidiary of Match.com. It might at first seem over sixty scientific articles, and is co-author of the ironic, then, that Fisher, who is 65, is not married book, The Learning Brain: Lessons for Education. and has no children. But she simply chose a different path, living with her long-term boyfriend These two women certainly have different for thirty years until he passed away last year. backgrounds and lifestyles, but in a recent Regarding children, she says, “I certainly had the transatlantic interview – just after lunch for Fisher, opportunity, but chose not to. I think because I and just after Blakemore had put her sons to bed – was too obsessed with my work.” the pair discussed their shared views on how books have the power to stimulate a scientific career, and Sarah-Jayne Blakemore is 36, married and has how babies shouldn’t (but sometimes do) have the two young sons. She lives in the small, historic power to cut such a career short. town of Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire, and each 6 LOVE Back then, people just thought of autism as an emotional “ reaction to upbringing. ” Blakemore and Fisher both credit a particular the pioneer of that, and now within the cognitive book with kick-starting their careers. In neuroscience community, it is absolutely not Blakemore’s case, that book was Autism: controversial at all, it is completely accepted.” Explaining the Enigma, by Uta Frith, given to her by developmental psychologist Peter Bryant. Blakemore says that it is not just the book and the science that she admires, but Frith’s whole Bryant was the father of one of Blakemore’s approach. Blakemore and Frith now work at secondary school classmates and had come to the same Institute. “You can’t go and have a the school to give a talk. Bryant’s talk had piqued conversation with Uta about anything without her Blakemore’s interest, but it was the book he gave insisting that you sit down and drink lots of tea her that turned interest into impetus. “It was a and eat some amazing biscuits,” says Blakemore, very inspirational book,” recounts Blakemore.