Vol 460|27 August 2009 BOOKS & ARTS Bridging the gender gap in Indian science A set of biographies reveals the trials and triumphs of India’s women researchers, says Asha Gopinathan. Lilavati was the clever daughter of the twelfth- century Indian mathematician Bhaskara II. A well-known mathematician in her own right, she inspired generations of Indian women. Bhaskara’s famous book on was R. RAMASWAMY named after her, and he addressed many of its verses to her. Lilavati’s Daughters spotlights women based in India who have pursued research in science, engineering and mathemat- ics from the late nineteenth century to today. A collection of 98 short biographies, the book stems from a project initiated by the Women in Science panel of the Indian Acad- emy of Sciences, Bangalore, to provide young girls with inspiring role models (see www.ias. ac.in/womeninscience). The diverse personal stories span many disciplines and regions of India — and are inspiring. The earliest chronological entry is for Anandibai Joshi, the first Indian woman to go abroad and study to become a doctor. From 1883 to 1886 she attended the Women’s Medical Attending a science summer school encouraged geneticist Sudha Bhattacharya to become a researcher. College in Philadelphia and was awarded an MD degree for her thesis Obstetrics Among Aryan scientists came from ordinary middle-class across the country during summer camps. Hindoos. Unfortunately, she contracted tuber- families. Most grew up not in the nation’s big The road to the top is never smooth. Many culosis and had to return to India. She received cities but in rural areas, where getting an edu- of the women acknowledge sexism in their no treatment: Western doctors refused to treat cation in any discipline, let alone in science, professions, a lack of institutional support, a brown woman and Indian doctors would not is difficult. In rural Punjab, mathematician double standards in measuring their achieve- help her because she had broken societal rules. R. J. Hans-Gill had to pretend to be a boy and ments, social bias due to caste, self-imposed Joshi died in 1887 at 22 years of age. wear a turban to attend school — a secret that limitations, negative stereotypes surround- Thankfully, not all the women in the book was kept between her family and the head master. ing single women and the multiple roles that had such tragic lives, although many had to Biologist Chitra Mandal was accompanied married women with families have to juggle. overcome obstacles to achieve success. Physi- to school in rural Bengal by her grandmother They have used many strategies for survival. But cist Anna Mani, who worked with the Nobel because the teacher would not let the four-year- most important is their passion for their work. laureate C. V. Raman, was old in without someone to The motivations of these female scientists not awarded a doctorate Lilavati’s Daughters: The Women look after her. are often surprising. Not everyone in the book despite publishing several Scientists of India Almost all of the women aspired to win the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar single-author papers. Yet Edited by Rohini Godbole and speak of the premium Prize for Science and Technology: only a hand- she went on to become the Ram Ramaswamy their families placed on ful has won this coveted award. Instead, they deputy director-general of Indian Academy of Sciences: 2008. education and the sup- have put their energies into teaching and com- the Indian Meteorologi- 369 pp. 300 rupees, $25 (pbk) port and encouragement municating science, taking their research out cal Department and, after See http://tinyurl.com/liladaug each received from fam- of the lab to change people’s lives. retirement, set up a fac- ily members. Mothers are Each of these essays is special. They tell of tory to manufacture instruments to measure especially significant — poorly educated ones vibrant women who combine a tough life in wind speed and solar energy. as well as some who were scientists themselves. the sciences with other interests such as cricket, Many of those highlighted were the first to Dedicated teachers, both at school and college, dance, music or literature. Had I received break into male-dominated professions: Asima were also influential. They spotted and nurtured this book as a young girl, I would have been Chatterjee was the first Indian woman to be talent and lit sparks of curiosity in the minds of captivated. I hope that Lilavati’s Daughters will awarded a DSc; E. K. Janaki Ammal was elected these young girls. In post-independence India, be translated into many languages and grace a fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences the government schemes such as the National Sci- libraries worldwide. It is a wonderful resource year it was founded; Kamala Sohonie was the ence Talent Search scholarship have helped for both mentors and mentees. ■ first female director of the Institute of Science, many women, including geneticist Sudha Bhat- Asha Gopinathan is a neuroscientist based Mumbai; and Bimla Buti is a former director of tacharya, now a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru in Trivandrum, Kerala, and a member of the plasma physics at the International Centre for University in New Delhi, to pursue their dreams International Network of Women Engineers and Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy. by allowing them to study at a good university Scientists. It is interesting that many of these women and to meet eminent scientists and peers from e-mail: [email protected]

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4 M. COOK

B Benedict Gross andBenedict Don The many faces ofmathematics NATURE is Zipporah widow the Levinson, of Norman interviewed other members. senior Also faculty departmentthe might lostwith passing the be of that reflections on mathematics of and story the concerned Strang became Gilbert his colleague of applied mathematics and philosophy, when early death of Gian-Carlo Rota, MITprofessor wascompiled Thebook Segel. sudden after the with adozen members faculty by author Joel tute of Technology (MIT)through interviews ematics department at the Insti- Indian classical music, respectively. an early interest patterns inthe of Western and note Manjul and Bhargava Elkies Noam and musicians, professional of families from come and Persi Diaconis both Timothytheme: Gowers music isanother frequent asleep. Abackground in done at night half- when Serre says his best work is on aproblem: Jean-Pierre concentrationsustained career. important Also is researching asuccessful decisivecan be inachiev- on indextheorem, their Singer and Michael Atiyah formula or between Isadore on eponymous their Zagier whatsuggested ing they should work on. hav- as several by der Grothendeick named is from mentors —Alexan- or field inthe leaders interest inmathematics. Later came influences For others, it piqued wasateacher who their often before age the of ten, by afamily member. cite an early introduction to problem solving, interested became they subject. intheir Many how of explanation an by accompanied trait more than 90living mathematicians, eachpor- In two recent that books portray mathematicians. discovery, or teaches others to doso, iscentral to The question of how one makes agreat scientific o Mathematicians Recountings: Conversations withMIT 208 pp. $35,£24.95 Press: 2009. by MarianaCook Inner World Mathematicians: AnOuterView ofthe AK Peters: 2009. 330pp. $49 by JoelSegel o Collaboration, such as that between that as such Collaboration, Recountings Recountings k Mathematicians s a n d

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1 0 8 3 Timothy Gowers: musicinspired maths. © 2009MacmillanP e-mail: [email protected] Dentistry ofNew Jersey, New Jersey 07103, USA. Rehabilitation attheUniversity ofMedicine& ofPhysicalthe Department Medicineand Eric L.Altschuler and scientists to come. willinspire two books in these mathematicians mathematics. Onadifferent insights the scale, intuitionlegendary extended from physics to The great man’s important.” prophetic reply shows that his very be will that “Oh, responded, “Lie groups,” Einstein hereplied, towhich Einstein asked Kostant what heworked on. stein’s suddendeath. Lingering car, inthe Einstein homeAlbert just aweek before Ein- college at , by way of Uni- the cal reactions. Wherever Kostant went —from , and listing formulae the inchemi- in School High at Stuyvesant Lieberman Mr teacher, with began hischemistry est inscience inspiring and appears His books. inboth inter- and colleagues or from writing article. areview tions have come from interactions with students proofs. explain They how research new direc- problems todeveloping an intuitive feel for ing research success,from working on prize The professors share strategies their for achiev- department formaths others. the wasaservice longer an ‘M’ carrying prefix to indicate that catalogued asequivalent to others at MIT—no daythe maths in1959 when courses became pride ispalpable asmanycollective remember Geometry lytic Thomas’sGeorge text classic havebooks from arisen MITcourses, such as membersfaculty isbroad and deep. Many text- able running of the department. revered for both hismathematics and for his apastdepartmentLevinson, chairman is who Bertram Kostant’sBertram account isparticularly The interest inteaching among senior these Years later at Princeton, Kostant drove (Addison-Wesley, 1952).The ublisher isassistantprofessor in is not an algebraic number. algebraic an not is in the midstofin the amaths mann proved —who that studied underC.L.F. Linde- Werner Heisenberg and had previously taught physicist German refugee who had aby Rosenthal, Arthur At Purdue hewastaught He was also tied to history. point. high a at department MIT of Berkeley, California, to Princeton, University the tute for Advanced Study in versity of Chicago, Insti- the s Limit

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OPINION

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1 NUMERICAL READING 7 : 2 5 : 5 5 OPINION NATURE|Vol 460|27 August 2009

Q&A: Science pop songsters The US band has played rock to adults for more than two decades — and to children since 2002. Next week it releases the , with educational tunes about the elements and evolution. , who fronts the band with , explains why a science-friendly thread runs through their music.

Your 1987 remake of the 1959 children’s song ‘Why Does the Sun Shine?’ is still popular. Why did you cover it?

We have songs about science and also about S. GRIES/GETTY the pro-science culture of our childhood — the post-war science boosterism that was going on. The science record that we covered that track from was part of the post-Sputnik period in US history when there was a lot of interest in getting kids into science.

Was science a missed calling? I would have been a crummy scientist but I would have been enthusiastic. I like science a lot and it’s something that I think about all the time, almost as an amateur. It was a nice convergence of personal interests and a logical next step that we did an album about science.

How does this follow on from your previous records for children? We put out Here Come the ABCs as a placeholder. John Linnell (above left) and John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants hope We were not overly their next album for children (inset) will help boost interest in science. concerned about teaching kids the alphabet because you worry that this In the new album you write a musical they are going to learn the might alienate some retraction: ‘Why Does the Sun Really alphabet anyway. It was a listeners? Shine?’ Why set the record straight? pretext for entertainment. John Flansburgh took We overstated the case in saying that the The follow-up with the the bull by the horns by original song is fatally flawed, because a numbers was an obvious writing that song and lot of the information in it is good. The choice — although we were resistant to doing addressing that situation, which is that Sun does convert hydrogen into helium the Here Come the 123s because it was so religion cannot take the place of science. and there’s a nuclear reaction and that’s the obvious. Science was a departure from that It’s not something you can tiptoe around. source of the explosive radiative energy pattern. And that was really exciting. We It’s important that everybody gets what coming out of the Sun. The only thing that got to do something personal to us with the the discussion is about. If we’re talking was seriously wrong with the original song is full promotional machinery of the Disney about the history of Earth, we can’t rely that the Sun is not gas, it’s plasma. It’s one of corporation behind it. on religious tradition to tell us all the those modern distinctions that was lost on information. He says it in the song: as the writers in the fifties. From the first song, ‘Science is Real’, this beautiful as the stories are, they don’t tell album seems to be making a statement. us everything we need to know. It’s an old What’s next? Why is that important? complaint on the part of scientists, but it I wish we could do a second volume of the It seems that science has suffered in this bears repeating. science because there’s a lot more stuff we country recently, so it was political in a haven’t covered. I don’t know, maybe that’s way. There has been some scepticism about Did you hire a fact-checker? going to be our next move. We could spend a science in the past 25 years that has been We did. Eric Siegel from the New York Hall lot more time on science. ■ unfortunate. There’s a decadent quality to of Science listened to everything and gave Interview by Brendan Maher, Nature’s Biology that — that the culture has lost its way. us very useful information, only some of Features Editor. which we entirely comprehended. He was Your lyrics talk about evolution being pointing out, also, things in the videos that Here Comes Science will be released digitally real and how stories about angels and were misleading or not making the point in on 1 September, and as a CD/DVD set on unicorns are just that, stories. Did the right way. 22 September on Idlewild/Disney Sound .

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