Thread by @imperialcollege

NEWS FLASH! It’s not a dislike of “hard maths” that puts girls off studying or pursuing careers in maths + physics.

It’s outdated and damaging stereotypes that close doors on many talented girls and women.

Ready to hear about some of our most inspiring women physicists?

🧵

1⃣ Prof. Michele Dougherty, our Head of Physics.

🪐 She leads missions to other planets. During @NASASolarSystem’s #Cassini mission to Saturn, she discovered an atmosphere on Saturn's moon Enceladus.

She's now gearing up to explore Jupiter's icy moons.

More from Michele👇🏾

“I am so very proud of all that my students and staff achieve as they carve out their careers - irrespective of their gender. It is astounding to me that senior leaders in the UK continue to make such unbelievably stereotypical comments, which are not backed up by data.”

2⃣ Emeritus Prof. Joanna Haigh, who was also Head of Physics.

She's an influential climate scientist who was Co-Director of @Grantham_IC. Her research looks at the physics of Earth's atmosphere and how it's affected by CO2 and solar radiation.

🔗 ow.ly/KjoB50IUgj4

3⃣ Dr @jesswade, a physicist who works on new organic LEDs that could make more efficient screens.

In 2019, Jess was one of @Nature's top 10 people who matter in science for raising the profile of underrepresented scientists.

And she has written a book for kids titled 'Nano'.

Jess says: "I honestly can’t believe we’re still having this conversation. It’s patronising, it’s infuriating, and it’s closing doors to exciting careers in physics and engineering for generations of young women."

More from Jess in @guardian: theguardian.com/education/2022…

4⃣ Prof. Fay Dowker is a theoretical physicist who researches several areas, including quantum gravity and causal set theory.

In 2017, she talked about the nature of space-time on @BBCRadio4’s the Life Scientific: ow.ly/JCcv50IUgGW

5⃣ Prof. Jenny Nelson's work on solar power looks at novel materials to use in solar cells.

Since 2010, she has been working with @Grantham_IC to explore how photovoltaic and other renewable technologies can help us mitigate #ClimateChange.

6⃣ Prof. Claudia de Rham's work on ‘massive gravity' is said to have had profound implications for the area of research now dubbed ‘beyond Einstein gravity’.

In 2020, she won the Physical Sciences & Engineering category of the @BlavatnikAwards: ow.ly/H1OS50IUgYw

7⃣ Prof. Ji-Seon Kim, Director of our Plastic Electronics Centre for Doctoral Training.

She researches soft electronic materials for application in biological sensors and energy harvesting, including solar cells that recycle indoor light: ow.ly/UFtY50IUhju

These are just seven of our fantastic women physicists.

Next time you hear someone say girls don’t like physics, remember there are many more amazing women physicists out there.

Fancy joining them? Check out our BSc in Physics now 👇🏾

ow.ly/1AAY50IUhlP