Given all the romantic sparks flying around, not to mention the crying women, it's a wonder that anything gets done in labs and life-science facilities these days — a message conveyed by British scientist Sir Tim Hunt last week in South Korea.
At the World Conference of Science Journalists, the Nobel-prize winning biochemist told the audience about his "trouble with girls."
With females in the laboratory, Hunt remarked, three things happen: "You fall in love with them, they fall in love with you, and when you criticize them, they cry."
Instead of shedding tears in the wake of Hunt's sexist comments, women in science have taken to Twitter, using the hashtag #distractinglysexy to mock Hunt and prove him wrong. Thousands of female scientists, researchers, doctors, and others have posted pictures of themselves at work or in the field – often donning unglamorous garb such as lab coats, safety glasses, or biohazard suits – with captions poking fun at Hunt's notion that their tears and affections present hazards to their male coworkers or render them incapable of professionalism.
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How do my male colleagues publish anything when I show up dressed so revealing? #distractinglysexy pic.twitter.com/D3GYQQciyc
— Van Q. Truong (@vanqtruong) June 12, 2015Nothing like a sample tube full of cheetah poop to make you #distractinglysexy pic.twitter.com/tdBTLRos4p
— Sarah Durant (@SarahMDurant) June 11, 2015Mind you, guys in the lab were always checking out my nice rack...#distractinglysexy #TimHunt pic.twitter.com/xT7jpL0hiE
— laura baxter (@scientist_me) June 10, 2015It might seems I was fixing a leak on the Large Hadron Collider but I was just #distractinglysexy @CERN pic.twitter.com/zP3kEh6NYF
— Giulia (@DrGiuliaLanza) June 12, 2015Other posts heralded the achievements of notable female scientists, often in ironic jest.
I'm really glad that Curie managed to take a break from crying to discover radium and polonium #distractinglysexy pic.twitter.com/txYVHoidK5
— Amy Remeikis (@AmyRemeikis) June 11, 2015Late to the party but here is my #distractinglysexy grandmother, Dorothy Hodgkin, heading for the Nobel prize. pic.twitter.com/tkZ8kiPUBf
— kate hodgkin (@theduchessstill) June 12, 2015Days after #distractinglysexy first appeared on Twitter, the hashtag continues to burgeon. Hunt has resigned from his post at University College London.
More coverage:
• Comments on 'girls' in science highlight persistent gap in field
• Nobel laureate Tim Hunt talks about 'trouble with girls' in labs
• Nobel laureate Tim Hunt resigns honorary post after sexist remarks