2010-08-07
Explanation
This comic addresses the problem of gender disparity in mathematics by contrasting two approaches. The header reads "Problem: There are disproportionately few women in mathematics." The panel is then split in two. On the left, labeled "Sensible Solution," a group of people suggest, "Can we try to remove the stigma of math as unfeminine?" On the right, labeled "Common Idea," a single person suggests, "Can we make math pink?"
The joke satirizes well-meaning but shallow attempts to attract women to STEM fields by simply repackaging the aesthetics (making things pink, adding flowers, using "girly" branding) rather than addressing the deeper cultural issues -- such as the social stigma that frames mathematical ability as unfeminine or incompatible with femininity. The comic argues that the real barrier is cultural attitudes, not the color scheme of textbooks.
The votey panel drives the point home with a mathematical equation rendered in the "pink" approach: "e^(i*pi) = FLOWERS!" This takes Euler's identity, one of the most celebrated equations in mathematics, and replaces the result with "FLOWERS!" -- a perfect encapsulation of how the superficial approach patronizingly dumbs down and feminizes the content rather than making the field itself more welcoming.