Abstract
Women are underrepresented in scientific careers and positions in the United States. According to statistics from the National Science Foundation (1996), women constitute 51% of the U.S. adult population and 46% of the total labor force, but only 22% of the scientists and engineers in the labor force. The underrepresentation is the most severe in the physical sciences and engineering, with lower percentages of women in these fields than in the biological and life sciences. In addition, women scientists in academia are less likely to be in the higher ranked positions than their male colleagues who received degrees at the same time.
