— In the second presidential debate, Mitt Romney lamented the fact that all the applicants for his gubernatorial cabinet were men. “Gosh, can’t we find some women that are also qualified?” he asked, requesting what he described as “binders full of women.” This remark generated significant controversy during the campaign, but also brought the “gender gap” back into the national conversation. The term “gender gap” refers to the disproportionate difference in the number of men and women at top level positions of many professions, including government. If this were 1952, we could easily point to overt sexism as the sinister force behind the gap, but in 2012, sexism and gender-based discrimination in the workplace are, supposedly, a thing of the past. Unfortunately, data show that the proverbial glass ceiling is still firmly in place, with men outnumbering women in high level positions in government, business, science, technology, and many other career paths (6, 7). So despite decades of activism, anti-discrimination lawsuits, and legislation to prevent biased hiring practices, why can’t we close the gender gap – particularly in the sciences, which are supposed to be a pure meritocracy based on research output? Continue reading Mind the Gap: Uncovering Gender Bias in the Sciences