The reconquest of women in new technologies

You may not know this, but until the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, the computer science course was mainly feminine, and they were responsible for the creation of several computer technologies and languages. However, today, those who study this science are mostly men. What would have happened for this phenomenon to occur?

Before the creation of the personal computer, the instrument was seen as a large machine that had the function of processing data and performing calculations, activities related to the work of secretaries, and was focused on mathematics. However, when computers started to reach people's homes and to be popularised by technology companies the game changed and it was precisely because of this word.

The first home computers came with a very strong proposal regarding ludic games and the act of playing was something typically male. So this universe began to be inhabited by men. Along with this, it also became an economically promising area, drawing even more attention from boys.

Since then, the number of women in technology courses has only been decreasing for a few reasons: lack of incentive, propagation of a stereotype that men are better in the exact and technological areas and lack of female representation.

Our intern, Laura Kiehl, who works in natural language processing (PLN) at Yuki, thinks the lack of women in technology is part of an institutionalised prejudice, she also said that although she encounters some challenges, she intends to pursue the field.

Beatriz Maia, Senior Analyst of our bot, undergraduate in Systems Analysis and Development at the Federal Institute of São Carlos (IFSP), says that she is part of a minority in the course and that the dropout of girls is high, "In the beginning I even had some girls with me, but unfortunately they were leaving the graduation".

Inspiring Women

Hedy Lamarr, was an Austrian-born, US-based actress who created the technology necessary for the existence of Bluetooth Wi-fi and mobile phones. She developed and patented a method of transmitting radio signals. The invention contributed to the communication system of the American armed forces and later to mobile phones.

Other very important names in the field of technology are: Ada Lovelace, creator of the first algorithm in history, Sister Mary Kenneth, first woman to hold a PhD in computer science, Jean Sammet, creator of FORMAC (one of the first computer languages in existence) and many others.

There is no denying that women were extremely important individuals for the development of technology, so it is only fair that they participate in these processes once again. As we have seen above, there is little encouragement, propagation of pre-established ideas about female capacity and, above all, lack of role models in evidence. It is a social commitment to fight for more gender equality and opportunities.

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