For years, even after MySpace, Facebook and Twitter had really got going, we yearned for a way to tell our friends we loved science. No not love science, fucking love science. Oh sure on occasion we'd happily stumble upon a little fact about the platypus poisonous skin but until we truly took the time to read New Scientist properly – instead 'saving it for later' and allowing it to pile up in the bathroom, using the same logic (logic! Sciencey) as the award winning actor 'oh these old Oscars, Ijust use them to prop open the door' so visitors know you are a person that can both understand science and can defecate at the same time.
Then one day a page popped us for Facebookers to like. A page destined to become more popular than previous favourite Yes I will go out of my way to step on that crunchy leaf page. A page that read New Scientist for us and picked out all the science news we cared about. Which is cute animals, but in a slightly more edgy way than Cute Overload.
Then one day a page popped us for Facebookers to like. A page destined to become more popular than previous favourite Yes I will go out of my way to step on that crunchy leaf page. A page that read New Scientist for us and picked out all the science news we cared about. Which is cute animals, but in a slightly more edgy way than Cute Overload.
The great thing about I Fucking Love Science isn't just that it is consistently interesting, but unlike other pages I and all my Facebook friends like – or statuses that accuse you of not caring if you don't like, copy and paste to your own status about some cause (is it possible for Facebook to create an ambivalence button?) (actually is it possible for someone to explain to me how such statuses can possibly raise money?) it doesn't bother me to see the same post liked and shared repeatedly.
| I Fucking Love Science has accumulated over 4.2 million likes and has posted some surprising facts of the strange but true variety but none seemingly stranger (or truer) than Wednesday's post. The administrator announced their joining of Twitter. It wasn't the slow adoption of the social networking platform de jour that got everyone raising their brows, but the fact this personal Twitter account belonged to a woman. @Elise_Andrew is not just a woman in science, no, here's the ground-breaking part. She's cute. | Had the page been called I Fucking Love Nursing, we'd all (and I mean we – if we're all honest) probably think it was run by a woman administrator. |
I know, I know, up until now it has been believed that expanding knowledge in the field of science distorts a woman's face. That's why so few women take up scientific thinking. Or 'sciencey stuff' as we ladies call it. Before breaking out in boils. The I Fucking Love Science administrator has so far escaped such disfiguring and I believe this is why the Facebook post announcing her Twitter account received reactions such as “holy hell, youre a HOTTIE!” and “Wait wait wait Ur a girl?!” (turns out you don't have to be acquainted with grammar to love science by the way, I suppose that's the beauty of it). There were also mildly smug comments from wannabe Sherlocks who has guessed the administrator was a 'girl' due to a post about shoes. GUYS DON'T WEAR SHOES. And no scientist dabbles in transvestism. Fact.
Elise Andrew was obviously surprised and a mite irritated by the reaction, tweeting “EVERY COMMENT on that thread is about how shocking it is that I'm a woman! Is it really 2013?”
This isn't some wonderful demonstration of how some women can grasp science, or can be scientists (I typoed that as scientits – perhaps we can from this day forth use that for those in the field of science who are hostile towards women co-workers). It is a horrible realisation that still, still anything with a scientific bent is seen by default as masculine. Had the page been called I Fucking Love Nursing, we'd all (and I mean we – if we're all honest) probably think it was run by a woman administrator.
In fact I am not even sure it is the surprise, or the assumption that anything science based must be run by a man. It's the idea that it is of interest, that it matters to us so much.
Squeamish Kate
Elise Andrew was obviously surprised and a mite irritated by the reaction, tweeting “EVERY COMMENT on that thread is about how shocking it is that I'm a woman! Is it really 2013?”
This isn't some wonderful demonstration of how some women can grasp science, or can be scientists (I typoed that as scientits – perhaps we can from this day forth use that for those in the field of science who are hostile towards women co-workers). It is a horrible realisation that still, still anything with a scientific bent is seen by default as masculine. Had the page been called I Fucking Love Nursing, we'd all (and I mean we – if we're all honest) probably think it was run by a woman administrator.
In fact I am not even sure it is the surprise, or the assumption that anything science based must be run by a man. It's the idea that it is of interest, that it matters to us so much.
Squeamish Kate
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