Date: Fri, 2 Mar 2001 18:42:08 -0500 (EST)
To: aaswliststsci.edu
Cc: aaswomenstsci.edu
Subject: AASWOMEN for 03/02/01
Sender: owner-aaswliststsci.edu


	AAS Committee on the Status of Women
    weekly issue of 03/02/2001, ed. by Meg Urry and Patricia Knezek

This week's issues:
1. American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics is now considering
   an early career award 
2. First-course astronomy textbook that includes diversity in astronomy
3. Marketing female dolls as positive role models
4. Request for help to U.S. astronomy graduate students

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1. American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics is now considering
   an early career award 
From: Dr. Martha H. Redi

The American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics is now considering
an early career award for women in plasma physics.  This was originally
proposed as 5 years after the PhD, then 10 years after the PhD, then Prof.
Noah Hershkowitz at U. Wisconsin made the insightful suggestion that it be
awarded within ten years of work in the field, to allow for women who have
taken time off, and for career changes.

Dr. Martha H. Redi
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory

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2. First-course astronomy textbook that includes diversity in astronomy
From: Jay Pasachoff

I was interested to read about Kristen Sellgren's attempts to make her course 
inclusive.  Alex Filippenko and I tried to do so in our new, short, 
first-course text, The Cosmos (2001).  Not only do the accomplishments of 
women astronomers get discussed (accompanied by photographs for Vera Rubin 
and Jill Tarter, though without a photo for Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin), with 
the people identifiable on purpose by name, but also there are interviews, 
with portrait photographs, with Jeff Hoffman, Carolyn Porco, Gibor Basri, and 
Sandra Faber.  For anybody who is counting, that is 50% women and 25% black.  
Further, we have a photograph of Stephen Hawking.  The eclipse images on 
pp. 179 and 181 were composited by a transgendered person.  Hypatia didn't 
make it into this short book, but is in my longer text, of which I am 
completing the sixth edition.  See:

www.williams.edu/astronomy/cosmos
        
  Jay Pasachoff
  jay.m.pasachoffwilliams.edu   

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3. Marketing female dolls as positive role models
From: Angelle Tanner

An article in a recent Los Angeles Times brought my attention to a company 
called Smartees that markets dolls with professional occupations. Some of the 
dolls will include "Sarah the Scientist", "Elizabeth the Engineer" and 
"Madison the Marine Biologist".  I even jokingly suggested "Angelle the 
Astronomer" and they might just make one!

It's good to see some effort in trying to show girls that we can do anything.
Their web site is:

www.smartees.com

  Angelle Tanner
  UCLA Astronomy

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4. Request for help to U.S. astronomy graduate students
From:  Rica S. French

The Astronomy Department at the University of Texas at Austin will be
undergoing a review by an external committee. The graduate students
will be submitting a report and would like to include some information
on compensations. To provide a fair comparison of our situation with
astronomy grads around the country, we've developed a survey that we'd
appreciate your responses to. If you are a grad student studying
astronomy at a US institution and wouldn't mind taking a few minutes
to answer our 9-question survey, please send an email to either
rfrenchastro.as.utexas.edu or kallersastro.as.utexas.edu to receive
a copy. You may also access a link to the questionnaire where it can be
viewed/saved as a text file at: 

http://zircon.as.utexas.edu/

Many thanks,
Rica S. French

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