Colloquium talk by Prof. Emilia Mezzetti

[Fabio Perroni]

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SISSA MATHEMATICAL COLLOQUIUM

Tuesday, January 20, 2015 - 14:30, at SISSA main building, Room: A-005

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Prof. Emilia Mezzetti (Universita' di Trieste) will talk about

"Women and Mathematics".

Abstract:  In the fourth century BC., Plato, in the Republic, wrote  
"... so, my friend,
there is no special faculty ... which a woman has because she is a  
woman, or which a man
has by virtue of his sex..." Yet, the number of women holding  
important roles in scientific
research is still small, despite the scientific departments of  
universities are frequented
by a growing number of girls. On the other hand, authoritative recent  
studies have shown that
males and females have the same mathematical skills, thus dispelling  
the widespread belief that
women have no capacity for math. So the causes of under-representation  
of women in so-called
"hard sciences" such as physics, chemistry and, of course,  
mathematics, must be sought elsewhere.
I will try to retrace the history of women in mathematics, presenting  
some interesting stories,
from Hypatia to Sofia Kovalevskaya,  Emmy Noether, Julia Robinson.  
Then I will present some
statistics that give a better idea of the current situation in  
relation to the different geographical areas.
I will attempt to analyze the various causes, constraints, stereotypes  
that are the basis of this imbalance,
and finally I will mention the various initiatives that seek to  
encourage the involvement of women in science.


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The Mathematical Colloquium is an important occasion to get together,
and  for scientific and cultural exchanges between professors,
researchers and students.
For this reason a Colloquium is an appointment which cannot be missed.
For the success of the initiative, everyone is warmly invited to
attend the seminar.

Best regards
Fabio Perroni

-- 
Fabio Perroni
SISSA
Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati
Via Bonomea n. 265 - 34136 Trieste (Italy)
Room A-725
Tel. +39 0403787 854
email perroni[at]sissa.it