Pilgrim’s Progress: Male Tales Told During A Life In Physics

-       The beginning of the chapter is thought provoking for me, especially as a former introductory physics student.  The description of how an introductory course is supposed to work is eerily accurate.  Although I will probably never advance past that part of the journey to being a physics professional or academic it is interesting to see the parallels between my life and this seemingly ‘generic’ physicist path. 

-       “Phallic imagery is found in much of the informal discourse of the male particle physicists…such speech is abundantly present in every stage of a scientist’s education.”  How different would the imagery be if there were more significant women physicists in the field?  How would the imagery and metaphor around this change?

-       “They learn that information taught at each stage is often distorted or partial, a very rough approximation of the truth, which is to be disclosed at later stages.”  In my personal experience this is also true in Chemistry, and Biology as well.  

-       I really loved the description of science contrasting with the social systems of reward and success on pg 80.  Merton describes scientists as rational, open minded and objective, with prizes, appointments and publications are bestowed on those that follow the ideals of science to the highest degree.  The cynic in me doubted this as soon as I read it.

-       “…the wives of almost all of the most successful senior physicists have developed and maintained strong careers in addition to raising children”

-       I like the contrast between the Nobel prize in Chemistry winner’s account of a collaborative and almost democratic process and then two pages later the consensus that particle physics is almost never democratic or collaborative.