Science and Engineering PhDs: A Canadian Portrait

A recent Stats Canada survey found that:

for every woman who held a science or engineering doctorate in Canada in 2001, there were four men.

Not that surprising to me, as a female graduate student in the Faculty of Engineering. Women are still highly under-represented in science and engineering graduate studies.

Also, for each age group, earnings of female science and engineering PhDs were significantly lower than those of their male counterparts. For every dollar earned by a male doctorate holder, female doctorates earned 77 cents. In contrast, a female in the general labour force earned 71 cents for every dollar earned by a male.

Not great, but at least it's better than the general labour force! Slowly but surely I think women are starting to take advantage of opportunities for higher education in technical fields. Don't be scared girls!

On average, a scientist or engineer with a PhD employed on a full-time basis earned $70,000, nearly twice the average of $36,000 for Canada’s paid full-time workers in 2000.

A different perspective

Most of what I've read about the "credit crunch" in the US has described the process as basically an unfortunate incident that took the market by surprise. While I have my own feelings that greed and speculation played a large role, this is the first article I've come across that describes the intentions behind the major players' actions.

It was suprising to read at first, since I guess I am a bit naive in my thinking of the markets as cold, soulless arenas where financial transactions take place without malicious forethought. But this is the real world. People are out to make money. Hedge fund managers are trying to "earn" their million dollar bonuses.

every financial crisis must have villains: a cabal of cranky, omniscient, uncaring old men pushing buttons that drive stocks and home values down, ruin families' retirement plans and make kids cry

How low can it go?

I read a great article today, describing French president Nicolas Sarkozy's reaction to the falling value of the US dollar. He says that despite the US asserting the importance of a strong currency, they have not taken steps to prevent the dollar's value from sliding further (ie. see recent interest rate cuts). This presents the idea that perhaps the US is allowing the dollar to fall to boost its exports to try combat some of the fallout from the credit crunch.

He said the U.S. should “denounce the abuses and excesses of a financial capitalism that sets too great a store on speculation ... [and] commit fully to the establishment of the necessary rules and safeguards. The America I love is the one that encourages entrepreneurs, not speculators.”

Well said.