An Open Message To Young, Professional Women Intent On Climbing The STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Ladder

Take inspiration from a group of underwater daddy fish. They’ve got you covered

Yesterday I sent this letter to Kristen, my sister’s granddaughter, who, in the next few weeks will begin her first professional job as an engineer, in Belfast.

Excitement, as you can imagine, is at fever pitch.

In posting it I received this response from Penny Grubb, an English writer and online friend. She’s referring to my article in which I talk about the tiny percentage of women in scientific roles.

Alas, they still are (underrepresented) in STEM generally, and how wonderful to see your great niece (if that's the right relationship) going out into that world.

It got me thinking..

And children

You see I believe that we women are in many ways, biologically disadvantaged to compete in the business world.

Many of us want to have our cake and eat it too.

We want to climb the business ladder.

At the same time, most of us also want to have children, and children have to be cared for.

Am I right in suggesting that this is why, especially in the science world, we women don’t do so well?

We don’t compete because we can’t compete because ALWAYS, we have to factor in our children, their needs well above our own.

But what if we could offload some of the ‘women stuff’ that we are saddled with, you know:

• pregnancy
• morning sickness
• child minding
• and I’ll leave you to fill in as many blanks as you wish.

I’m thinking:

We know how to send men to the moon.

We can transplant hearts and limbs.

We can instantly talk to family on the other side of the world.

We can access information online, instantly.

So why not some decent research into male surrogacy? It’s not beyond the realms of imagination…is it?

It’s already happening deep down in the sea…dads taking over a female’s assumed job.

Let’s look at some

The Cardinal Fish

The dad is referred to as a mothbrooder.

‘The female will release an egg mass close to the chosen male and after the male fertilises the eggs, he will take them into his mouth to carry them during the incubation period, until the fry are ready to hatch. As he incubates the eggs the male cardinal fish will open its mouth to rotate the egg mass from time to time, to keep them clean and aerated. At times he will partially expel the eggs before sucking them back in. The male broods the eggs in his mouth for up to 30 days, during which it does not feed! Some males may show partial brood cannibalism, by eating up to 30% of their brood, during this period!’

Now give or take the cannibal part, I’m pretty sold on this idea. Imagine if all you had to do, as a female, was provide the eggs (no biggie), and custodial duties to your chosen partner in crime, you could get on with the business of personal fulfillment.

The Lumpsucker

I reckon there’s a huge market for this kind of dad. The most self-sacrificing dad. He would put even the best of mothers to shame.

This fellow… ‘heads in the spring to very shallow inshore waters to breed. The female will lay the eggs which are fertilized by the male. The male lumpfish guards the egg mass, never leaving it except to drive off some intruder. When the tide’s in, he uses his fins or tail to keep water circulating over all of the eggs. When the tide recedes, however, the lumpsucker goes the extra mile by staying put. He remains with his eggs by attaching himself to the rocks with a sucker formed from his pelvic fins, a kamikaze move exposing him to hungry gulls and crows!’

What a dad! I can’t think of one male who could compete with that…not even a quick duck into the local for a pint, for this species.

What’s not to love?

The Seahorse

‘Seahorses are the only fish that experience true male pregnancy. When mating, female seahorses deposit their eggs, between 100 and 200, into the male’s pouch. The female leaves right after the mating. The male incubates the eggs for a period of up to 45 days, regulating the temperature and caring for them until they hatch. When the tiny seahorses are ready to be born, the male undergoes muscular contractions to expel the young from the pouch which can last up to 4 days… The dad may mate and receive a new load of eggs within hours or days!’

So can you see where I am going with all of this?

There are other instances of male fish adopting the female role and totally caring for their offspring…with no sign at all of laggards.

They just do it. (You may be wondering what the females do when all of this is going on. Unfortunately this does not belong within the scope of this article! Escape Clause…I have no idea!)

Just like we women…we just do it.

But now I am suggesting…

In those early days/years, if dads could just free women up to concentrate on their careers, by assuming the motherly role, I’ll bet my bottom dollar, we would change the percentages of successful women in the STEM industry.

All it would take is some significant research into the possibilities (remember, a man in the moon was once but a dream!), believe it could happen, and who knows where it would take us?

What do you think?

Below, please find another article I wrote regarding the uphill battle women have faced in their science careers.