Dec 11, 2013
Welcome to the eighth Science Video of the Week feature! Each Wednesday I will post an interesting science video with some comments from either myself or the producer, and will conclude with some questions for discussion. I started this feature for the Women in Film and Video of Washington, DC email list, and I really want to hear your comments as well!
If you created a science video you would like to share, especially ones that had interesting challenges you’d like to discuss, send it to me and we can chat a little about how you approached the production!
Before you watch the video:
This particular video has definitely been making the rounds. Emily Graslie has a great YouTube series called The Brain Scoop where she shows the collections of The Field Museum in Chicago. This often involves cutting apart and preparing animal specimens, thus the name of the show. Her series has been popular for about a year now, and she recently put together this video about the non-ideal aspects of being a female science YouTube series host.
Watch the video:
[length – 6:01]
After you watch the video:
Both STEM fields and video production fields are male-dominated, so combining them can be interesting. Add to that an internet platform, where anonymous people are free to be as rude as possible, and I can see where you might encounter some problems. Emily does a great job at addressing these issues, and challenges us to call people out on their comments instead of dismissing them as an inevitable, silly part of YouTube.
Discuss:
I don’t know, I’d be inclined to ignore some of the comments too, because you just can’t completely stamp out stupidity and ignorance. But of course we need to be supportive of female content creators, and not act like a sexist environment is okay. What do you think are the best ways to encourage females in this field?