SWC Podcast

In this podcast we are very grateful to speak with one of our friends, Marie. Marie worked her way up the corporate ladder of a few different biopharmaceutical companies, beginning in the 1980s and continuing through the 2000s. She generously shares some of her specific experiences of sexism, but also her general thoughts on such a male dominated atmosphere and culture. Some, like infamous psychologist Jordan Peterson, argue that not all professional disparities between men and women are due to sexism. Some men gravitate towards high risk jobs like bridge building, for example, while some women gravitate towards kindergarten teaching. But does this explain the fact that men still, on average, make more than women? Doesn't the explanation of these disparities often come down to cut and dry sexism? We also touch a bit on Buddhism, a belief system Marie identifies with, and the more tolerant attitude of the Millennial generation regarding issues of prejudice and discrimination. The podcast is primarily conducted by my colleague, Alejandro Orozco.

In this episode I speak with Byzantine historian Dr. Edward J. Watts from the University of California at San Diego (UCSD). Dr. Watts has written an excellent new book on Hypatia, arguably the greatest ancient female philosopher. Most discussions of Hypatia focus on her death at the hands of a Christian mob, whereas Edward's book tries to refocus our attention on the heroism of her life. As we discuss, Hypatia's greatness comes not just from the fact that she was a female philosopher who undoubtedly endured sexism but from the fact that, despite the sexism, she was a great philosopher, earning the respect of male and female intellectuals alike. Throughout our discussion we touch on the state of ancient Alexandria during Hypatia's time, the famous menstrual rag incident, the relationship between mathematics and philosophy, and more.