The Future of Women in STEM: What About Their Creativity?

The Buzz 1: “After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in esthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are always artists as well. (Albert Einstein, 1923; news.microsoft.com/europe/2017/12/05/creativity-stem-contradiction-terms-not-europes-girls/) The Buzz 2: “Unfortunately, creativity is often attributed more to men than women…In Europe, women make up fewer than 40 per cent of all scientific researchers – despite the fact the continent has a centuries-old legacy of creative female scientists and inventors.” The Buzz 3: “How many of us use the term ‘creative’ to describe a person who is good at math?…The myth (and it is a myth) that the arts are creative and the sciences are quantitative shapes the way we approach education…the skills that come with creativity are necessary in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) fields, too.” (www.forbes.com/sites/alisonescalante/2020/11/30/creativity-education-is-equally-important-for-careers-in-stem-and-the-arts/?sh=6f38b120554f) We’ll ask Sandra Estok, Cali Bird, Alison Morgan and Louisa Pateman for their take on The Future of Women in STEM: What About Their Creativity?