Books
Messy: The Power of Chaos to Disorder to Transform Our Lives by Tim Harford
An economists discusses the utility of mess in many situations, from politics, to war, to business, and many things in between. If nothing else, it will make you feel better about the current cleanliness level of your house.
The Mother of All Questions by Rebecca Solnit
Beautiful read on the importance of being able to tell your story from the author of "Men Explain Thing to Me." Solnit writes, "By redefining whose voice is valued, we redefine our society and its values."
No is Not Enough by Naomi Klein
An informed and detailed review on how "Trump is not a rupture at all, but rather the culmination — the logical end point — of a great many dangerous stories our culture has been telling for a very long time” and a call to action and resistance.
Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud: The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman by Anne Helen Petersen
Peterson discusses women who challenge the notions of what is considered "acceptable" female behavior. Each chapter covers a different woman, from Serena Williams ("Too Strong"), to Hillary Clinton ("Too Shrill"), to Lena Dunham ("Too Naked").
We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Eloquent and insightful 50-page essay on the importance of feminism. Adichie reminds us that "Culture does not make people. People make culture. If it is true that the full humanity of women is not our culture, then we can and must make it our culture."
What Happened by Hillary Clinton
Cheers to the "difficult, noisy, unlikable, aggressive, hard line, inauthentic, shrill, abrasive, ambitious, hyper-rational, irrational, emotional, histrionic, hysterical, cold, opinionated, feisty, pushy, self-interested, unapproachable, bossy, mannish" female leader. You shine through in the detailed knowledge of what your oversee, the policies you've enacted and the popular vote. Thank you.
It is the responsibility of intellectuals to speak the truth and expose lies by Noam Chomsky
The title is telling. An historical recount of why it is important for the intellectual to speak and act in eras in which leaders distort and deceive, and why the intellectual is in a unique position to do so.
Articles
Africa: Women's invisible power by Linda Noring (Nature,October 5, 2017)
Brave Enough to be Angry by Lindy West (The New York Times, November 8, 2017)
Both Male and Female Advisers Can "Mother" by Jennifer Sills (Science, December 2017)
Clinical Research: Inequality in Medicine by Anna Nowogrodki (Nature, October 5, 2017)
Friend, Foe, Ally, Adversary... or something else? by Laurence J. Stybel and Maryanne Peabody (MITSloan Management Review, Summer 2005)
Grant Writing Bootcamp: An Intervention to Enhance the Research Capacity of Academic Women in STEM by Jessi L. Smith, Chatanika Stoop, Micaela Young, Rebecca Belou, and Suzanne Held (BioScience, July 2017)
Harassment in Science is Real by Robin E. Bell and Lora S. Koenig (Science, December 2017)
'Intersectional feminism'. What the hell is it? (And why you should care) by Ava Vidal (Telegraph, January 15, 2014)
The Abrasiveness Trap: High-Achieving Men and Women Are Described Differently in Reviews by Kieran Snyder (Fortune, August 16, 2014)
This is how Sexism Works in Silicon Valley by Ellen Pao (The Cut, August 20, 2017)
To Reduce Gender Biases, Acknowledge Them by Debbie Chachra (Nature, August 22, 2017)
Why Do Women Bully Each Other at Work? by Olga Khazan (The Atlantic, September 2017)
Why Women Aren't CEOs According to Women Who Almost Were by Susan Chira (New York Times, July 21, 2017)
Will Extended Paternal Leave Ever Exist in the United States? by Meghan M. Biro (Huffington Post, February 17, 2016)
Will We Stop Trump Before Its Too Late? by Madeline Albright (New York Times, April 6, 2018)
Gender differences in recommendation letters for postdoctoral fellowships in geoscience by Dutt et al. (Nature Geoscience, October 3, 2016)
Why it's hard to prove gender discrimination in science by Amy Maxmen. (Nature, May15, 2018)
Japanese university investigates claim that it downgraded women’s test scores by David Cyranoski (Nature, August 7, 2018)
Ending Sexual Harassment in Academic Medicine by Victor Dzau and Paula Johnson (New England Journal of Medicine, September 12, 2018)
Why we’re editing women scientists onto Wikipedia by Jess Wade and Maryam Zaringhalam (Nature, August 14, 2018)
Serena’s Not Alone. Women Are Penalized for Anger at Work, Especially Black Women by Maya Salam (New York Times, September 13, 2018)
Podcasts
Hosts Shereen Marisol Meraji and Gene Demby talk about race and identity. Some of the conversations can make you feel uncomfortable, angry, or sad, but they will all teach you something new, too. Listen to "When 'Miss' Meant So Much More: How One Woman Fought Alabama — And Won" to get you started!
Shankar Vedantam of NPR presents social science research aimed at understanding why we do the things we do, and how we can change our perspective. The Aug 28 episode "How Silicon Valley Can Help You Get Unstuck" is the episode containing a discussion on creating multiple 5-year plans, as talked about in our September 2017 meeting.
It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders
Listening to Sam and his friends discuss the news stories of the week on Fridays is the opposite of a cable news talking heads show - no yelling, but instead intelligent and nuanced conversation that will leave you with new insights. Tuesday "deep dive" episodes dig into single interview or topics, from a discussion of Charlottesville (Aug 14 episode) to a visit to the offices of The Onion (Aug 21 episode).
Thoughtful and practical discussions cast by the Harvard Business Review. Episodes 592: Why Everyone Should See Themselves as a Leader and 595: Transcending Either-Or Decision Making are apropos to our mission.
Oxford style debates on important social issues. The question for debate in September was: Is the U.S. Healthcare system terminally broken? As part of the debate, an issue key to our mission arises: how do we scale "islands of excellence?" The original U.K. version is also a winner.
Videos
How to Make Stress Your Friend by Kelly McGonigal at TedGlobal 2013