IBM Apologizes for “Hack a Hair Dryer”(huffingtonpost.com)
huffingtonpost.com
IBM Apologizes for “Hack a Hair Dryer”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ibm-apology-hack-a-hair-dryer_5665a739e4b08e945ff004c9
6 comments
To play Devil's advocate here, it's a very non-engineering mindset to discard the possibilities in revolutionizing the hair dryer. Sure, it's not as glamorous as working on the top Node.js module on Github, but you know what's in nearly every household in America? A hair dryer. I'm not aware of any significant changes in hair dryers beyond safety for a good long while (though, as a short haired person, I don't use them often so I could be mistaken). It seems like a good thing to work on. I don't believe the circuitry is very complicated, and the ceiling for complexity you could work with is fairly high (i.e. is there some combination of heat, air pressure, and air directionality that could cause curlier hair?). It gives an entry point to people at various skill levels.
I think there was a gap in communication. Women felt as though IBM were implying that they should stick to their gender roles, when really IBM was saying that women are in a unique opportunity to improve on womens products. Not that they can't work on more "serious" subjects, but rather that they welcome both genders to work on all of their projects but this one is something women are going to be better at due to experience. It would have been far more impressive if the project had ended with a far more efficient or featureful hair dryer than burned down amidst cries of sexism.
I think there was a gap in communication. Women felt as though IBM were implying that they should stick to their gender roles, when really IBM was saying that women are in a unique opportunity to improve on womens products. Not that they can't work on more "serious" subjects, but rather that they welcome both genders to work on all of their projects but this one is something women are going to be better at due to experience. It would have been far more impressive if the project had ended with a far more efficient or featureful hair dryer than burned down amidst cries of sexism.
I see at least two real problems here.
1. A hair dryer is considered a female only item.
2. Hacking something only women use is considered no real engineering.
This is seems to go in the whole "lean in" direction again. Women need to do something "real" (read: male) to be considered real engineers.
1. A hair dryer is considered a female only item.
2. Hacking something only women use is considered no real engineering.
This is seems to go in the whole "lean in" direction again. Women need to do something "real" (read: male) to be considered real engineers.
I can see the blunder, but aren't the reactions from the women already in the tech sector a non-sequitur? They're not the target audience.
The SMBC comic is right on, but "removing the stigma of math as unfeminine" is HARD, and "making math pink" is much easier, and potentially lures in more girls - maybe some of them will discover that they like math.
The SMBC comic is right on, but "removing the stigma of math as unfeminine" is HARD, and "making math pink" is much easier, and potentially lures in more girls - maybe some of them will discover that they like math.
I agree with you. One of the tweets in the article says, "Yikes @IBM! I’m a girl & actually know OS Assembler language & have “hacked” your MVS operating systems." Well, sure, if you're already in tech, "hacking a hairdryer" might seem patronising, similar to "making math pink." But if you're not already in tech, a hairdryer is a relatively simple, common, and familiar device. It has potential and I'd bet it's mostly untapped[0]. It seems like the perfect kind of thing to get started with, IMO. To me, the fact that it's a "beauty product" to is irrelevant.
[0] For curiosity, I thought I'd check out results from HackADay for hairdryer hacks, there isn't much to see: https://www.google.com/search?q=site:hackaday.com+hairdryer
[0] For curiosity, I thought I'd check out results from HackADay for hairdryer hacks, there isn't much to see: https://www.google.com/search?q=site:hackaday.com+hairdryer
If women in the tech sector aren't qualified to comment on the worthiness of the "hack a hairdryer" approach who is? I mean, what then is the relevant experience for qualification?
Even if 1 women became more interested in STEM it would have been a net positive.
I am not sure why making math pink is mutually exclusive with removing the stigma. By being effective it may naturally remove the stigma.
My fiancee would never be interested in making Google, it is just too dry for a lot of people. But she would love to work on more feminine products like jewelry and definitely hair dryers. That is just who she is and appealing to that seems like a logical choice to me.
It sounds like they are marginalizing her interests because they are more feminine.