Social Change: Women,
Networks, and Technology
Natalie Quizon
Orange Labs SF | natalie.quizon@orange-ftgroup.com
[ 1] Markoff, J.
“Computer Science
Programs Make
a Comeback in
Enrollment.” the New
York Times, March 16,
2009.
“How can a girl grow up to be a
technician, engineer, or a scientist?
Providing girls with the guidance
and incentives to take skilled posi-
tions in science and technology is
a major responsibility of educators
and employers. How can teachers,
human resource experts, govern-
ment, universities, and women’s
organizations contribute to increas-
ing career options for women?”
—“Women In Science and
Technology,” a report on an MIT
workshop, May 1973
[ 2] “Fastest Growing
Demographic on
Facebook: Women Over
55.” InsideFacebook.
com; http://www.
insidefacebook.
com/2009/02/02/
fastest-growing-demo-
graphic-on-facebook-
women-over-55/
January + February 2010
[ 3] Heil, B. and
Piskorski, M. “New
Twitter Research:
Men Follow Men and
Nobody Tweets.”
Harvardbusiness.org
Voices; http://blogs.
harvardbusiness.org/
cs/2009/06/new_twit-
ter_research_men_follo.
html/
interactions
More than 35 years ago, Laya
Wiesner first came up with the
idea of convening a workshop
at MIT University on Women In
Science and Technology (WIT).
In her role as the wife of Jerome
Wiesner, then the 13th president
of MIT, she immersed herself
in what she recognized was a
critical educational issue. The
subsequent report introduced
the above questions, the guiding
objectives of the WIT Workshop
held at MIT in 1973, which
focused on the challenging
dearth of women in the science,
technology, engineering, and
math fields (STEM).
Indeed, in 2009, we are still
grappling with these very same
issues. Today only 11. 8 percent
of computer science bach-
elor’s degrees are awarded to
women [ 1]. The WIT Workshop
highlights the prevalence of a
top-down approach, coalescing
governmental, institutional, and
business resources to increase
the numbers of women in
STEM fields. However, much
has happened in the interven-
ing decades, most notably, the
rate of technological innovation.
Ironically, the role of technology
itself in drawing women into the
STEM fields often gets relegated
to the background in this dis-
cussion.
