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It has been less than a month since President Donald Trump declared the war on diversity and inclusion in federal agencies. NASA was ordered earlier this month to scrub its sites of “anything specifically aimed at women (women in leadership, etc.)” and now an important telescope project has edited its biography of astronomer Vera Rubin to eliminate information about the Increased number of women in careers scientists.
The Rubin Observatory, a telescope financed by the federal government at a top of the top, recently altered the online biography of the astronomer that bears the name, omitting the information related to women who break barriers in the field, Propublic first reported.
Vera Rubin’s work helped to prove the existence of dark matter in the cosmos, changing the way scientists study the universe in the 1970s. He published more than 100 scientific articles and conducted an innovative investigation into spiral galaxies and rotation of galaxies. Beyond that, he advocated women in science after having to overcome several obstacles throughout their career because astronomy is a field dominated by men.
Because of its contributions to science, Rubin has a crest on Mars that bears his name, as well as an asteroid, a satellite, a galaxy and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory of the National Foundation of Sciences. The National Observatory is the first to be appointed after a woman, and was, with triumphant, signed by Trump during his first term. Shortly after Trump was inaugurated for the second time, Rubin’s biography was cut to offer a diluted version of his struggles as a woman in the field.
In the original version, a long section entitled “She advocated women in science” spoke of Rubin’s efforts to break the barriers in a field dominated by men. The full section was initially eliminated, but then reappeared with some important adjustments, according to Propublic.
“Science is still a field dominated by men, but Rubin’s observatory is working to increase the participation of women and other people who have historically been excluded from science,” the Observatory website read previously. “The Rubin Observatory welcomes everyone who wants to contribute to science, and takes measures to reduce or eliminate barriers that exclude those with less privileges.”
That paragraph, however, was eliminated at the end of January, in addition to a slight adjustment. Instead of, “Vera itself offers an excellent example of what can happen when more minds participate in science,” website Now he says: “Vera Rubin offers an excellent example of what can happen when many minds participate in science.”
The reviews reveal what is and is not allowed under the new orders, and how the recognition of discrimination or the need for diversity is now strictly prohibited. NASA is following similar orders; The space agency sent a memorandum at the end of January ordering employees to eliminate certain terms of their public websites, including sub -present groups, women in leadership, environmental justice and accessibility.
Several groups of the Astronomy community are currently working to maintain a content file that has been eliminated from federal websites, in addition to the content that runs the risk of being eliminated, according to Space.com. “The idea that somehow can erase these sources is wrong: scientists in general and astronomers in particular will not take these threats,” said astronomer John Barentine to Space.com. “But we have a long way ahead and I hope there are times when that path is very difficult to walk.”
Once established, Rubin used his position to open doors for women in science and become a mentor for the next generation. While heading to the 1996 Berkeley graduation class, Rubin saying“I hope you fight against injustice and discrimination in all its forms. I hope you value diversity among your friends, among your colleagues … among the population of the student body. I hope that when I am in charge, I do better than my generation. ”
