
'Physics was built by men': Cern scientist's remark sparks fury - okket
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/oct/01/physics-was-built-by-men-cern-scientist-alessandro-strumia-remark-sparks-fury
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aurizon
Equality political correctness maintains that the male brain and female brain
are equal. Evolution has built the male body physically different to the
female body. These physical differences are obvious, and mainly deal with
their roles in procreation. Overlaid on this are mental optimizations that
deal with existential aspects, such as child nurturing, hunting, combat etc.
These overlays, over time, have led to the larger male physiology - we can see
this. Are there mental differences that are not visible, but show up in some
metric. One aspect of combat is the ability to co-ordinate the muscular
aspects of combat. (here I include such aspects as fist fighting, stone
throwing, spear throwing etc). Does the male brain have a superior functional
ability in this area? There is some evidence of this. Most ancient armies had
more men than women in them. Why? - I suspect it is due to the fact that the
average man can defeat the average woman in assorted forms of combat, which
would cause army selection to be slanted towards men. This holds true in
modern armies where physical combat is a factor. Many armies, most notable of
Israel, have found modern combat has a lower need for strength, and have added
women to almost all roles. (Elite tactical units, like US Navy Seals, tend to
still be fully male - as far as I know) Now this CERN scientist is alleging
that some aspect of the male brain shows up in the mental capacity to master
particle physics. It is true that if you count heads, or count papers, that
men are more highly represented. Is this true to a difference in capabilities,
or a physics culture so hostile to women that it is an effective barrier? If
it is a hostile culture, we need to change it to level things, as why waste
the potential abilities of women in this field.

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alexgmcm
He isn't a 'Cern scientist' \- he worked _at_ CERN, not _for_ CERN.

Thus CERN have little, if any, control over what he says.

It's a shame the media can't cover the actual science that takes place there
rather than some nutcase creating drama.

