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Education

Interviews: Adora Svitak Answers Your Questions 107

Posted by samzenpus from the here-they-are dept.
Recently, you had a chance to ask child prodigy, author and activist, Adora Svitak, about education and women In STEM and politics. Below you'll find her answers to your questions.
Question
by phantomfive

In your talk you said that kids deserve high expectations. What help do you have to reach your high expectations? What should kids do who don't have the same help?

Adora: A lot of people will say things like "kids this young aren't mature enough to handle this kind of content," with "this kind of content" meaning anything serious or controversial. Since I was a young age, my parents didn't tolerate that kind of closed-mindedness about what their daughters could or couldn't "handle"; they invited us to sit at the "adults' table," and we had the opportunity to discuss current events with family friends. They expected that our age wouldn't preclude us from developing opinions and having causes we believed in. Kids in families with more conservative definitions of what it means to be a child should find high expectations from other places--teachers, mentors, role models--and give those high expectations in turn to peers.



Child prodigies
by Anonymous Coward

To what extent do you believe child prodigies are merely products of their environment?

Adora: To clarify, I've never thought of myself as a child prodigy (contrary to how my Wikipedia page might describe me). I think that everyone's a little bit a product of their environment. My environment happened to be saturated in good literature; I remember having many, many more books than clothes. My parents and babysitters read to my sister and me all the time. I loved writing and found it to be intuitive. In that sense I credit a lot of the development of my abilities to my environment.



Microaggressions
by Kohath

Do you believe in microaggressions? Why or why not? Is a belief in microaggressions helpful or harmful? To whom is it helpful? Who should worry about microaggressions? Who shouldn't? How can someone be certain they are innocent of committing microaggressions? If someone is accused of something like committing microaggressions, are there two sides that must be considered, or only one?

Adora: I never heard of microaggressions as something to be "believed" in or not, I take it fairly for granted that they exist (particularly since I've seen them). There's a great video on YouTube called If Asians Said the Stuff White People Say that does an excellent job of outlining some of the ones folks hear every day. As someone who's half-white, half-Asian (and looks predominantly Asian) I often hear questions like "where are you from? Like, where are your parents from?" Knowing about microaggressions is very helpful, because it allows us to avoid accidentally perpetuating racist or sexist commentary. If someone is accused of committing microaggressions, it's entirely possible that there intentions were good and something hurtful was said accidentally, but that doesn't negate their responsibility to hear the offended party's response so they know how to avoid microaggressions next time.



I Don't Get It
by Tablizer

After seeing my development job outsourced to India in the early 2000's during an IT slump, I have no compulsion to steer my daughter into STEM. I hope she finds a career that she grows into and does well, STEM or not. STEM is in demand at this spot in history, but I've learned the hard way it's subject to fads, bubbles, age discrimination, H1B's, and outsourcing. Please tell me, why push women into such risk? I suspect it's lobbyists trying to get cheaper IT labor for their plutocrat bosses by flooding the market. Feel welcome to convince me otherwise.

Adora: STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) is an extraordinarily broad set of disciplines, and like any set of disciplines, has some areas with more job opportunities and some with less. It's not inherently more risky than any other group of fields to study. Women are no less equipped to handle the "risk" that comes with STEM.



What can be done to get more women into CS?
by squisher

Hi, I'm the "typical" white male in CS gradschool. My subjective view is that CS has one of the lowest number of women compared to other STEM disciplines. I'd estimate that typically there are about 5% tops in classes or at conferences. For various reasons I think that this situation is a shame for the community and society as a whole. What do you think can be done to improve this? Thanks!

Adora: The low numbers of women in STEM should be considered a national shame. One huge problem that prevents more women from either going into CS or continuing with it is "brogramming" culture, especially in Silicon Valley startups, that promotes a macho, objectifying attitude toward women that puts "bros before hoes" (see: ousting of Whitney Wolfe from Tinder after she was harassed by another co-founder there, or Uber's CEO threatening a female journalist) and creates toxic workplace cultures. We need more programs like Girls Who Code and Black Girls Code to give young women a leg up in a supportive environment.



Happy thoughts
by Anonymous Coward

Hi Adora! Looking through any debate on gender issues is somewhat demoralizing, as there seems to be little focus on resolving the underlying issues. What do you think could be done to help people cooperate rather than yelling at each other?

Adora: Creating more opportunities for traditionally underrepresented groups to have their voices heard is incredibly important. Another thing I really like is the idea of "safe space," where groups can talk freely in the knowledge that what they say will not be used against them in any way.



Did TV make us do it?
by mrex

How much credence to you give to the theory recently put forward in a recent NPR Planet Money piece, ascribing the absence of women specifically in the computing industry to 1980s media representation of geeks and computer worker lifestyles?

Adora: My answer to this question is strongly related to my answer to the previous question about bringing more women into CS. I feel that the stereotype of CS as the domain of pasty geeks sitting around laptops in basements is honestly less harmful to the future of women in CS than the implicit or explicit discouragement of young women from entering industry that happens because of insensitive/sexist comments by professors or folks in the work world.
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Interviews: Adora Svitak Answers Your Questions More

Interviews: Adora Svitak Answers Your Questions

Comments Filter:

  • Where are your ancestors from? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by phantomfive ( 622387 ) on Monday December 01, 2014 @01:50PM (#48499653) Journal

    As someone who's half-white, half-Asian (and looks predominantly Asian) I often hear questions like "where are you from? Like, where are your parents from?"

    I'm not sure I see this as a 'micro-agression.' Or aggression at all, it's just a question. People ask me where my ancestors came from, and I tell them Scotland and Finland. No big deal. It's pretty clear I'm not native american.

    Sometimes I also get asked where I grew up. I tell them. Nosy people. If you don't want people to be curious about details in your life, that's kind of anti-social.

    • In fact, if someone asks, "where are you from?" and you interpret it as an aggression, that's a micro-agression in itself.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) *

        I have a foreign sounding last name and get asked this a lot. It gets tiring and reminds you that you are somehow apart from the group. Each time isn't a big deal on its own, but it adds up. I'm sure no-one is actually being agreessive when they say it, but none the less the effect of being asked over and over and over again does have an affect.

        It's no-one's fault, it's just something we sound address.

        • Yeah, welcome to life. In Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, there's a scene where the author complains about this very topic for someone who is a detective, and also for someone who plays the bassoon (I think, could be a different instrument).

          Calling it racism or sexism doesn't help the situation, and is a form of microagression on its own.

    • Re: (Score:2, Flamebait)

      by ShieldW0lf ( 601553 )

      I had to search for "microaggression"... turns out it's the #1 cause of "butthurt".

      There's a lovely little tumbler blog full of butthurt losers sharing their passive microaggression here:

      http://microaggressions.tumblr... [tumblr.com]

      Have a read, it's funny as hell

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by grub ( 11606 )

        I had never heard of "microagression" before this article. That tumblr blog has plenty of whiny lulz, thanks!

        • I had never heard of "microagression" before this article.

          Neither had I. It was the only thing I took away from this sad collection of platitudes.

      • The current politically correct method of declaring something politically incorrect.

        "Where are you from?" is normally a question associated with getting to know someone. It's a conversation starter, not a personal attack on it's own. Today, you can't even ask the question and be politically correct. Sad state of affairs.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by OzPeter ( 195038 )

          "Where are you from?" is normally a question associated with getting to know someone. It's a conversation starter, not a personal attack on it's own.

          Like everything else, it is not the question per se, but the intent of the delivery that is the issue. EG a simple "Fuck you" can have multiple connotations depending on the manner in which it is said. Likewise depending on how you ask where someone is from can be nice and friendly, or it can be dripping with disrespect.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by s.petry ( 762400 )
            I agree, but the answer is in this case to address the disrespect not the question itself. Saying "Good Morning" can be done in a tone that is rude and dismissive, but we don't attempt to ban the phrase because people can use terminology to be offensive. People will use any and all terminology to be offensive if that's their goal.
          • I'm stumpted to find any more than one meaning for "fuck you" that would ever be used in conversation. But that is besides the point. I can say anything in a disrespectful tone. In that case, it is the tone that is the issue, not the words. Working in Southern California, just about everyone will ask about where you are from because the vast majority of people I have worked with are from somewhere else, whether in the country or the world.

        • I guess the point here is that even 'intelligent' people are often pretty dumb or behave pretty stupid in conversations.
          That might be especially true for americans, sorry pun intended.
          No 'out of place looking' person in europe would understand the question "where are you from" as in: are you east cost or west coast or central USA? Are you from SF or forn NY?
          Everyone understands 'where are you from?' as 'what ethnic are you?', 'from what country did you imigrate?', 'what is the nationality/ethnic of your pa

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by s.petry ( 762400 )

            Ah, but now I learned that I have to phrase my questions in the USA more carefully if I see a very white woman with very black curly hair and black eyes: 'where are you from?' might be considerd an insult by her ... (*facepalm*)

            What hits media as this bullshit "microaggression" is not something most people abide by, so don't worry.

            As I said (and you agreed with), the question is not offensive on its own. If you were to ask conversationally "Where are you from?" most people would recognize that and answer "My family is from Cambodia." or "My parents were from India" even though they themselves are American and are not offended. Luckily the people that invent these terms and ridiculous claim regarding a simple question are not the

    • Re:Where are your ancestors from? (Score:4, Informative)

      by OzPeter ( 195038 ) on Monday December 01, 2014 @02:12PM (#48499869)

      I'm not sure I see this as a 'micro-agression.' Or aggression at all, it's just a question.

      You should watch the video. I've seen it (and others before). The issue isn't asking where you are from, it's the non-caucasion person saying they are from "here", and having that answer dismissed/disbelieved and then being asked "No, where are your parents from".

      It's a subtle racism that assumes that people who don't look like you can't really have been born on there same country as you.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by OzPeter ( 195038 )

        Damn auto corrections .. that should have read "born in the same country as you"

      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        by ShieldW0lf ( 601553 )

        No, it's a person with a chip on their shoulder being pedantic about phrasing to justify their self-perceived victimhood. When you cling tenaciously to a literal interpretation so it will allow you to take an affronted position despite the persons efforts to clarify what they meant, you're just a jackass who deserves zero sympathy and maybe even a little aggression. Not micro aggression... more the fist in the mouth kind of aggression.

        • Reading your post made me envision a fat white nerd punching a bitchy little asian girl in the mouth at a bar. lol

      • The issue isn't asking where you are from, it's the non-caucasion person saying they are from "here", and having that answer dismissed/disbelieved and then being asked "No, where are your parents from".

        I understand your problem, but you are minimizing my pain.

        What non-caucasian people don't understand is that caucasian people get asked annoying questions too. It's not fun. We can't label it as microagressions or racism though. We just have to endure the pain.

        If that sounds like "whining of an entitled person" to you, well, your whining sounds just the same. Microagressions. Life is annoying, people ask annoying questions. They notice things that are different. Then they notice things that are the same

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by OzPeter ( 195038 )

          What non-caucasian people don't understand is that caucasian people get asked annoying questions too. It's not fun. We can't label it as microagressions or racism though. We just have to endure the pain.

          I think you are missing the point. It is not being asked "annoying things", it is a phrasing of a question/ statement that ventures into disrespect of the person being addressed. There is no reason why that sort of behavior should just be accepted.

          For example do you think that it is reasonable to "cat call" women as they walk down the street? Do you think that the women should just "put up with it" as it is only annoying? Or should the people performing the act behave differently?

          • it is a phrasing of a question/ statement that ventures into disrespect of the person being addressed.

            The disrespectful phrasing is unintentional. The person asking still respects you.

            That is, unless you get defensive and upset. Then they might not respect you.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by OzPeter ( 195038 )

              The disrespectful phrasing is unintentional.

              Yet it is still there and it is still disrespectful. Why should you have to put up with any disrespect?

              The person asking still respects you.

              If people are systemically and continually "unintentionally" phrasing things in a disrespectful manner, then I would posit that no, they do not respect you.

              • If people are systemically and continually "unintentionally" phrasing things in a disrespectful manner, then I would posit that no, they do not respect you.

                Well, that is where you are wrong.
                However, I will tell you that you, OzPeter, I do not respect you. Why? Because you are acting like troll-bait, by your actions and words.

          • For example do you think that it is reasonable to "cat call" women as they walk down the street?

            I don't, but I also don't think it's reasonable to inject straw men into a discussion. The intent is far different.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by CODiNE ( 27417 )

        It is a common scenario where one would be offending for showing "interest" in others. Personally I AM interested in learning about other cultures and backgrounds but have to remember it's not always the right time to ask.

        I'm deaf, so at times it gets annoying having to explain over and over how much I can hear, how I can speak clearly, do I consider myself deaf or "hard of hearing" over and over.

        However I don't interpret that as aggression against deaf people, I realize they are curious and lacking a bit o

      • I never really asked that until I started trying to get laid. For me it was just a way to start a conversation with a cute girl so I could tell her she looked exotic or pretty or natural or whatever seemd most appropriate given her looks. It often worked as a starter and I'd often get asked back where my ancestors are from (Ireland). In a country where 99% of us have ancestors from another continent, I don't think it is racist to ask someone where their ancestors are from. But then again I'm not a 17 year o

      • Bull shit. Sorry, but as a pasty-white American I commonly get asked this - and in this exact form:

        Someone: Where are you from?
        Me: New Jersey, northern part
        Someone: No, I mean your parents/ancestors/family/etc
        Me: Oh, a bit Irish, a bit German, [family history]

        You know why? It's because we're a nation of immigrants. Almost everybody here including me and her "comes from" somewhere else. The only reason I don't often get asked specifically about my parents is because I look further down the generations. I'm s

    • Score 2 Flamebait, congratulations :)

      I interpret "Where are you from?" as "What is your cultural and ethnic background, because I believe all ways of living are valid and I'm interested in your story."

      To be ageist, reading her answers made me think that, however precocious you may be, there are some things that can only be learnt with life experience. Most of the answers, while highly articulate, read like they're straight out of a book called How To Be Perfectly Politically Correct. There's very little n

    • The thing you're not experiencing is getting asked this a lot - in contexts when nobody else is getting asked and people not being satisfied when you just say "here". To me the inequity/racism starts as soon as the white person is either not required to be asked the same question and/or the white persons answer is considered sufficient but the non-white persons answer is not.

      My wife is Asian and we live in a very very white suburb. When someone asked how she liked living there she casually mentioned that

    • After reading most if not all of this debate on microaggressions (first, it's pretty funny that the leading cause of feeling butt-hurt is microagression...) Butt we are not discussing how to move past it, the only relevant discussion once a problem is identified. can we please get some sort of conensus on how to ask people where they are from, conversationally. I have always thouroughly enjoyed discussing any persons' ethnicity or cultural upbringing within friendly conversation. (also often interested b
      • Wait until the second or third time you meet them. Then ask, "so, my ancestors are from Scotland. Where are yours from?"

        Alternately, lead by saying, "Does it bother you when people ask what your heritage is?"

        Asians try to figure out where each other are from the first time they meet each other too, so really it's no big deal.
      • I think more important than what you ask is paying attention to how people are feeling. If they are feeling uncomfortable by your line of questioning, then change the topic. Find something that can be enjoyable to both people.

        I really like your question though, it's probably the best post on this page. It gets directly to the heart of the problem.

  • On microaggressions (Score:4, Interesting)

    by iceaxe ( 18903 ) on Monday December 01, 2014 @05:07PM (#48501585) Journal

    First of all, this is the first time I've encountered this term, and find it rather interesting.

    To me it seems apparent that people interacting are bound to occasionally cause discomfort to one another in unintended ways. We'll leave out intentional aggressive behaviors, which seem to be a different topic. The ideal as I see it is not to eliminate this feature of human interaction, but to discover appropriate responses to it on both sides.

    Being offended is at some level involuntary, I think, although one can certainly get carried away with it. There should be ways to respond to it that encourage learning and accord rather than evoking defensive posturing.

    Likewise, having caused unintended offense and having it brought to one's attention will inevitably produce some level of defensiveness. Again, it's easy to get carried away with the defensive response. There should, again, be ways to accept and grow from the experience rather than turning it into worse offense and deeper divides.

    Perhaps learning to care about the feelings of the people you encounter at least as much as protecting your own feelings is the key. On both sides.

    Otherwise, get off of my lawn.

    Please.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by epyT-R ( 613989 )

      SJWs make their livings off maximizing that defensive response in order to psychologically and socially disarm their opponents.

  • sigh.. (Score:2, Insightful)

    by epyT-R ( 613989 )

    I stopped reading at 'micro aggressions'. That shit is tumblr style delusion.

    As far as I'm concerned, if she is as smart as claimed was able to meet the demands of the jobs she's had, then that's great. That's how it's supposed to work. However, it sounds like she's lobbying for affirmative action which is the opposite. Thumbs down for that.

    • Soooo you think it's impossible for a social exchange to occur in which a person says or does something, often accidentally, and without intended malice, that belittles and alienates a member of a marginalized group?

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