Imagine in Your Mind a "Scientist"

This is a question I ask my students during the first week of every class I teach. There are consistent responses: "white lab coat", "pocket protector", "test tubes", "eyeglasses". Then I ask "What gender?". They invariably answer "male". And then I ask "What ethnicity?" There is usually a pause, and the answer is invariably "white".

The core image in the minds of nearly all my students, no matter their background, is that scientists are old white guys in lab coats. I just can't imagine where they get such ideas...


There are lots of reasons that people don't imagine themselves as scientists, but the sad fact is that geology in particular has a really poor track record in the education and hiring of people who aren't white or male. I strongly encourage you to have a look at this post from Black Geoscientists:  http://blackgeoscientists.com/2014/05/18/geosciences-in-the-united-states-the-stats/.

"...this “is what geoscience feels like to most black people.” Not most black geoscientists, but most black people. Whether they’re a chef, teacher, writer, nurse, lawyer, or actor there is a widely held (unspoken) belief that geology isn’t for black people. And unfortunately, the statistics turn that belief into a fact."

There is a lot that needs to be done. There are too many big problems in our society to leave just to an army of old white men on the verge of retirement.