Tag Archives: feminism

Jeneral findings

Jeneral finds of the week: 2015-10-06

The real reason many women struggle to advance their careers, on losing the love of your life, a profile of a potential Prime Minister of Canada, and the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics, in this week’s Jeneral finds: 2015-10-06

  • It has always felt so unfair to me how our society doesn’t properly value those who care for others and teach others – nurses, teachers, caregivers. Instead we place higher value to those who “make things” and generate value (aka money) – business people, engineers, professional athletes. What I didn’t realize was how this frame of mind also systematically hinders women in the workplace even in those “making things” and “generating value” careers.  “Caregiver discrimination penalizes women at all income levels“, an excerpt from Ann-Marie Slaughter’s Unfinished Business. Identifying and recognizing the issue is the first step, but what is great about this piece is it also provides ideas on how to move forward. Between this piece by Slaughter and her prior writings, I’ve really come to admire her.
  • Close friends of my parents had their 40-year-old son-in-law pass away suddenly this weekend, leaving his wife and three young children. I can’t even imagine the grief and shock their family must be going through; I went and hugged my husband and held on a little longer than usual. I was also brought back to this truly moving post from Sheryl Sandberg earlier this year, a month after her husband Dave Goldberg also died suddenly. Would that we all have the same type of support in our times of need.
  • In the shadow of the upcoming election, Ian Brown continues to deliver outstanding writing in his in-depth profile of Justin Trudeau in the Globe (unfortunately it may be behind a paywall). It is a long read, but I’ve been yearning for more context and depth in the media coverage of the election, and this delivers on this front.
  • Physics friends celebrate! Canadian Arthur B. McDonald is the 2015 Nobel prize co-winner in Physics! Along with Takaaki Kajita, they were awarded for their contributions to experiments demonstrating that subatomic particles called neutrinos change identities, also known as “flavours.” The neutrinos transform themselves between three types: electron-type, muon-type and tau-type. The metamorphosis requires that neutrinos have mass, dispelling the long-held notion that they were massless. Cool that something I have vague memories learning about in Physics classes are newsworthy again. =)

~Jen

<–Prior finds of the week

Jeneral findings

Jeneral finds of the week: 2015-01-25

Here are the good/interesting/provoking finds I’ve stumbled across this week: 2015-01-25

  • This post from Mommy Shorts has an honest account of guilt I feel being a momager getting from deadline (start of school) to deadline (extra-curricular, dinner, bedtime), each day craving for the kids to be asleep so I get some Me time. “When they’re awake you wish they were sleeping, and when they’re asleep you’ll want to wake them up to cuddle.”
  • I spent some time last week reading some more of the background into “GamerGate” that erupted in certain parts of the internet world last year, as I had only read the headlines before. It was depressing. The vitriol some gamers out there who heaped such vitriol on anyone, in particular Anita Sarkeesian, who deigned to put together a series of critical analysis on video games’ use of female tropes, is astonishing. The intent of the critical analysis is to challenge the industry to do better. These gamer “opponents” took it as an attack on their core belief system and way of life. More than just rude and shocking misogynist comments, the behaviour displayed by these “opponents” of these critics have ranged from outright bullying, harassment, and cyber assault.  At least it was responses from some prominent voices such as this and this that affirms there is some sanity out there. I just don’t know how it will end well. Sarkeesian’s critical series? Very thought provoking, and well worth the viewing. [su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6p5AZp7r_Q” width=”480″ height=”300″]
  • Who knew that modern-day archery has veered so far from its original roots? Lars Andersen of Denmark knows. The skill he displays here is truly amazing, regardless of whether there is some film doctoring (he splits an incoming arrow with one of his own!). I wonder if Torontonians will start practicing this technique at this new archery tag centre?

~Jen

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