Breaking Down Stereotypes About Computing

A short talk I put together to break down some stereotypes about computing for a group of middle school aged girls.

Transcript

1. Breaking Down
   Stereotypes
   About Computing
   by Julie Pagano
   

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2. Julie Pagano
   • Software engineer
   • Shopping Experience team
   • Focus on front-end web dev
   • BS CoE from UPitt 2007
   • Coding since middle school
   

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3. Stereotype
   “an often unfair and untrue
   belief that many people have
   about all people or things with
   a particular characteristic"
   

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4. Stereotypes
   About
   Computing &
   Programmers
   

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5. What are some
   stereotypes?
   

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6. Stereotypes
   

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7. Stereotypes
   

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8. Stereotypes
   

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9. Stereotypes
   

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10. Stereotypes
    

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11. stereotype: men are better
    at computers & programming
    

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12. stereotype:
    at
    

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13. men are better at
    computers & programming
    NOPE
    

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14. reality: women are just as good
    at computers & programming
    

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15. I’m not going to
    shrink it and pink it
    

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16. omg computers!
    

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17. Let’s start with the past
    

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18. Awesome Women
    in Computing History
    

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19. Ada Lovelace
    !
    1815–1852
    • Analyst of Charles Babbage's
    analytical engine
    • First “computer
    programmer”
    

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20. Kathleen Booth
    !
    • Wrote 1st assembly
    language
    

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21. Grace Hopper
    1906–1992
    • Computer scientist & US
    Navy rear admiral
    • One of 1st programmers of
    Harvard Mark I computer
    • Invented the first compiler
    • Popularized “debugging”
    • “mother of COBOL”
    

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22. Frances Allen
    1932–present
    • Pioneer in the field of
    optimizing compilers
    • 1st female IBM Fellow in
    1989
    • 1st female recipient of the
    ACM's Turing Award (“Nobel
    prize of computing”) in 2006
    

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23. Barbara Liskov
    1939–present
    • Developed the Liskov
    substitution principle
    • 2008 Turing Award winner
    • Institute professor at MIT
    

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24. Anita Borg
    1949–2003
    • Founded the Institute for
    Women and Technology
    (now the Anita Borg Institute
    for Women and Technology)
    • Founded the Grace Hopper
    Celebration of Women in
    Computing
    

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25. Maria Klawe
    1951–present
    • ACM president 2002-2004
    • President of Harvey Mudd
    College (2006-present)
    • Harvey Mudd went from 10%
    to 40% female CS majors
    

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26. Maria Klawe
    

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27. Programming is
    all about math.
    

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28. Math is important, but
    there’s so much more.
    

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29. Problem Solving
    

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30. Creativity
    

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31. Communication
    

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32. People
    

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33. Awesome Things
    You Can Do
    With Computers
    

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34. Help People
    Tiffani Ashley Bell &
    Kristy Tillman
    • Creators of Detroit Water
    Project - matches people in
    Detroit to donors to help with
    water bills.
    

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35. Educate People
    Kimberly Bryant
    • Founder of Black Girls Code
    !
    Sara Chipps &
    Vanessa Hurst
    • Founders of Girl Develop It
    

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36. Develop Games
    Christina Ann Coffin
    • Founder of Light & Dark Arts
    indie game studio
    • Developer on games
    including Assassin’s Creed II
    and Battlefield 3
    

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37. Build Robots
    Heather Knight
    • PhD Student at CMU’s
    Robotics Institute
    • Works on human robot
    interaction, sensor fusion,
    personal robots, theatrical
    robot performances and
    behavior system design.
    

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38. Improve Lives
    Brittany Wenger
    • 1st place winner of the Google
    Science Fair in 2012 for Global
    Neural Network Cloud Service
    for Breast Cancer - web-based
    application to accurately
    assess tissue samples for
    signs of breast cancer
    

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39. Enable Fashion
    Camille Fournier
    • CTO at Rent the Runway -
    an online service that
    provides designer dress and
    accessory rentals.
    

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40. Harness Data
    Hilary Mason
    • Founder of Fast Forward Labs
    • Previously Chief Scientist at Bitly
    

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41. journalism, politics, art,
    literature, sports, law,
    advertising, forensics,
    engineering, film,
    animation, environment,
    communications,
    medicine, and more…
    

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42. programming is not
    just one thing.
    

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43. programming is
    a skill that
    opens doors to
    do many things.
    

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44. stereotypes about
    computing and
    programming are
    just that…
    

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45. stereotypes about
    computing and
    programming are
    just that…
    stereotypes
    

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46. Stereotype
    “an often unfair and untrue
    belief that many people have
    about all people or things with
    a particular characteristic"
    

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47. Questions?
    

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48. Attribution
    • Calculator designed by SuperAtic LABS from the Noun
    Project - http://thenounproject.com/term/calculator/
    36414/
    • Brainstorm designed by Björn Andersson from the Noun
    Project - http://thenounproject.com/term/brainstorm/
    15232/
    • Chat designed by Stephanie Scott Means from the Noun
    Project - http://thenounproject.com/term/chat/57678/
    • Crowd designed by Alex Kwa from the Noun Project - http://
    thenounproject.com/term/crowd/33373/
    

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