Women In Technology - Friday Links - 02/02/2024

Hello everyone, 

How is it February already?!  This month, we honour the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on February 11, and we are bringing you several in-person or online events (and volunteer opportunities) to celebrate in the coming weeks.  Whether you want to celebrate and encourage women at CERN, or help educate girls in developing countries, there’s something for everyone!   We also encourage you to check out the summary slides from our recent WIT Community Annual Review, as well as the upcoming CERN Alumni Job Fair, open to everyone at CERN. 

For fun, we are also sharing some impressions from a recent visit to the Curie Museum in Paris, as well as a thought-provoking article and photoshoot about fashion inspired by CERN. 

Have a great weekend!  

Kate, for WIT SC

Photo: Marie Curie’s office

Travel recommendation: Curie Museum in Paris

For anyone living in Paris or planning to visit, one of our Steering Committee members recently took a trip to visit the Musée Curie, located in the historic building that housed Marie & Pierre Curie’s famous Radium Institute.  The museum contains a number of scientific  artifacts related to the Curies’ research on radioactivity, and provides interesting information about the historical context of their work.  The highlight of the visit was undoubtedly the opportunity to see Marie Curie’s laboratory and office, beautifully preserved!   A close second: learning that the double Nobel Prizewinner Marie Curie also had to deal with boring service requests to fix leaky buildings!  The museum is free to visit, and is well worth the trip for anyone interested in physics, chemistry, or the history of science. 

High fashion meets high tech

You may have seen the recent article in Vogue about the Coperni fashion collection and photoshoot inspired by the technology of CERN.  The WIT Steering Committee has been talking about it non-stop, and we all have different opinions, so clearly the campaign has done a good job of provoking discussion!  

• Does it reflect progress by portraying a female model as a scientist, or does it objectify a particular female body type? 
• When they discuss scientists working long hours, are they celebrating passionate researchers, or endorsing an unhealthy work-life balance?
• Is the focus on fashion a distraction, or is it an inspiration to girls and women who are curious about science, but fear that they are too girly to be taken seriously?  

WIT SC couldn’t reach a consensus, but we did agree on two things: 

• The “Do not power down!” shirt inspired by the first WWW server is pretty cool
• Climbing a ladder in stilettos is not safe!

WIT community annual review

WIT held our annual review on Thursday, February 1.  We discussed our activities in 2023 and gave a sneak peek at some of our plans for 2024.  We had a great discussion, which continued over lunch at R1, and we’re very happy to receive so much enthusiastic and constructive feedback from our community. 

In case you missed it, you can still have a look at the slides at https://indico.cern.ch/event/1366692/; there you’ll find all of our contact information in case you are inspired to volunteer for any of our activities or suggest new ideas! 

WIT cake sale to support Aid for All (Feb. 6)

In honour of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, WIT is organising a cake sale to support Aid for All.  The event will take place in Restaurant 2 on Tuesday, February 6 from 12:00 - 14:00.  Whether it's cupcakes, cookies, your secret family recipes or any other sweet treats – we want it all! Help us turn this event into a sugary success and support Aid For All the best we can.   Sign up at https://indico.cern.ch/event/1368596/ if you would like to contribute your baked goods to the event. We would be eternally grateful!  

WIT Workshop: Impostor Syndrome (Feb. 9)

Ever felt like you weren't deserving of your achievements? Thought it was all just luck? You're not alone! Impostor Syndrome is that sneaky voice in your head making you doubt your incredible skills, talents, and accomplishments. It's the shadow that makes you question if you're a "fraud", even when the spotlight clearly shines on your successes.  During this workshop, we will introduce impostor syndrome, including what it is and how it usually manifests. We will do some hands-on exercises to increase your awareness about negative patterns of thoughts that may drain your potential, and to introduce you to a technique to help to mitigate these. 

There are still a few places remaining, so please visit https://indico.cern.ch/event/1328290/overview to learn more and register.  If you have already registered but can no longer attend, please cancel your registration to free the place for someone else. 

WIT social media campaign for IDWGS 

WIT plans to celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on our social media accounts by featuring the fantastic women of CERN doing what they love!  Would you like to be featured?  If so, please send us the following: 

• 1-3 good-quality photos, showing what you like best about your work (feel free to be creative!)
• Your name
• Your Instagram / LinkedIn handle if you want to be tagged
• Your nationality
• Your position (e.g. physicist, student, engineer, technician, etc.) 
• Tell us in a couple of sentences what you do, and what is your favourite thing about being part of the CERN community (keep it understandable for the public, please!)

Please send the pictures and the above info to: [email protected].   We’ll feature your photos on our Instagram (@wit.cern) and/or LinkedIn accounts in the days surrounding February 11. 

CERN Alumni Job Fair

As we gear up for the much-anticipated Third Collisions event at CERN (9-11 February 2024), we are thrilled to introduce a novel addition this year – the FIRST-EVER CERN Alumni Jobs Fair!

This Jobs Fair is a unique opportunity for all CERNois regardless of their contract at CERN (and especially those whose contracts are coming to end) to explore potential career paths beyond particle physics.

• Recruiters from companies like DoraHacks, ASML, Argusa, Sky Italia, and ETM will be present, eager to discuss job opportunities within their organizations.
• Additionally, attendees can discover the innovative ventures of CERN alumni-founded companies, including Ion Biotec, Terapet, Pickletech, Advantics, and Natural Cycles.
• And Eiroforum companies, such as ILL, ESO, Eurofusion/ITER/Fusion for Energy will also have their booths, as well as ISIS Neutron and Muon Source and Medaustron.

We are pleased to announce that the CERN Alumni Jobs Fair is open to ALL CERN employees, irrespective of their participation in the entire Third Collisions event. It's an excellent opportunity for everyone to network, ask questions, and explore the initial steps of their post-CERN journey.

All the details about the Jobs Fair:

• Time: From 8 February, 12:00 until 12 February 15:00
• Location: Main Building (Pas Perdus & Mezzanine)
• Registration: Not needed
• More information: https://alumni.cern/events/134591