Linux Format forums

andychannelle · LXF regular Joined: Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:08 pm Posts: 111

Girls and women can be quite geeky, I think, but they need more inspiration, support (friends not being mean if they're caught reading a Jared Diamond book, for example) and time. Unfortunately, there's more cultural capital to be gained among one's peers as a girl from knowing how much Posh Spice weighs (answer: almost nothing), which member of Blue released his solo single first (answer: Craig (or something)), and the diameter of Nikki from Big Brothers thigh (answer: about the same as my index finger). And this starts very, very young.
My daughter is a dinosaur geek, but she keeps asking for Bratz dolls, which are big-headed, collagen lipped, nylon haired horrors that dress like hookers. But if we buy her a doll, she'll play with it for eight minutes and then go back to the DK Eyewitness Guide to Fossils or a toy brachiosaur. The geek-crushing aspect is that she can't talk about fossils or saurapods with her friends; what they have in common is Bratz. She can conform and become a chav-in-waiting, or become a geeky outcast.
Perhaps schools should stop pandering to fashion and teach basic Linnean taxonomy, latin and computer programming (even just a smidge of HTML) to allow children to acquaint themselves with their inner geek before it is snuffed out by Barbie, Hot Wheels (although Hot Wheels collectors can be geeks, for some reason), and the awful, awful Sugababes.

Question: Why do I suddenly sound like a Telegraph reader from Tunbridge Wells.

jjmac · Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 9:32 am Post subject: RE: Sexual division of labour

>>
Question: Why do I suddenly sound like a Telegraph reader from Tunbridge Wells.
>>

Now i'm wondering what a Telegraph reader from Tunbridge Wells sounds like Rolling Eyes

jm
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Vanders · Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 3:21 pm Posts: 34

Nigel · Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 11:24 am Post subject: RE: Sexual division of labour

As the father of a very untypical girl, I do know what Andy means. My daughter is probably considered a geek by many of her classmates; she says she wants to become a "fashion victim", but is still more interested in books & computer games than clothes, gossip etc. When she becomes an adult, her individuality will be a great asset, but as an almost-teenager it doesn't make for an easy ride at times. It takes great courage to stand out from your peers in the early days of secondary school.
All you can do is be supportive, and encourage her interests no matter where they lie.

Rhakios · Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 8:37 pm Post subject: RE: Sexual division of labour

Hmm, I notice that most of the comments so far (well all of them really) have been about how to enable/encourage girls to be geeks. There have been none about how to get men to do the washing and ironing Wink

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M0PHP · Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 9:23 pm Post subject: Re: RE: Sexual division of labour

Nigel · Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2006 9:36 pm Post subject: Re: RE: Sexual division of labour

jjmac

Rhakios wrote:
>>
There have been none about how to get men to do the washing and ironing
>>

What about the knitting Smile

?

jm
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http://counter.li.org
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The FVWM wm -=- www.fvwm.org -=-

Somebody stole my air guitar, It happened just the other day,
But it's ok, 'cause i've got a spare ...

Rhakios

GMorgan

Washing and ironing are the same thing though. You throw the clothes in the machine then in the tumble drier. When the tumble drier is finished you hang them up before they've had a chance to crease. What creases there are drop out over time. QED

jjmac · Last edited by jjmac on Tue Jul 04, 2006 11:02 am; edited 1 time in total

In anycase ...

Never believe what they say about 'wash-n-ware'. I tried that once, it's nie on impossible to get a pair of jeans off after a shower. And besides, people can give a person weird looks when your hanging around a clothes line soaking Rolling Eyes

edit: spell

jm

Nigel · Posted: Tue Jul 04, 2006 8:57 am Post subject: Re: RE: Sexual division of labour

andychannelle · LXF regular Joined: Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:08 pm Posts: 111

I did some ironing yesterday morning - mostly school uniforms - but my wife doesn't like it when I knit, because the results always look better than hers. This is something to do with being ambidextrous which gives you really even (and tight) tension, making everything look fabulous.

This thread is getting very camp isn't it?

Still, you go girlfriends...

donoreo

I do my own washing and ironing for a few reasons:

1. My wife puts the heat too high on the dryer and shrinks things.
2. She cannot iron to my standards (I was in the Canadian Navy Reserve)

My wife is not a geek, but she does have her moments. I am hoping that at least one of my twin daughters that are on the way (they are at 32 weeks) will be.

TheDoctor · LXF regular Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2006 9:02 pm Posts: 325