Amy Graves, Swarthmore College

Physics, in the form that we do it today, has long been the domain of cis males (and in western countries, cis white males).   Happily, this is changing.  But the past casts a long shadow, and we live in a real world where race and gender identity strongly define us. This makes change slow and circuitous.

 

Let’s talk about our lived experiences as people who study physics. We can talk about our experiences before Williams, the present, and/or hopes for the future.  Our discussion could be structured around some themes on which I’ll bring slides.

 

Myths – Commonly held beliefs about what it means to be a successful physics student or professional … not always grounded in the truth.

 

Memes – The words and images in popular culture that spread themselves around the world …  signifying what physics is and what we should be.

 

Marginality – The exciting (lol) situation of existing on the margins of academic or workplace culture …  What are some of the coping strategies we can adopt, and resources that we can access to be resilient ourselves, and a good advocate for others?