lauren’s Reviews > Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men > Status Update

this chapter on medicine makes me so explicitly angry because like. what do you actually mean there’s a billion ways that medicinal research has failed women?? in sometimes fatal ways?? STILL?! I know this was published like five years ago but seriously 😭 barely anyone sex aggregates their data or even THINKS to include women. like I don’t want to be conspiracy but like this doesn’t make me trust the system

product design is failing women ! we know 🥲 from phones and pianos being made for a man’s hand to voice recognition and AI learning models being based on men, this hurts women whether directly or indirectly. i feel like I knew this stuff but I’m aware others might not so

very interesting chapter in women in agriculture and rural work and how female farmers are less likely to gain skills based on the fact programs are designed for the “universal man”. incredibly frustrating chapter at times

this chapter on occupation safety really hit home… I knew wearing men’s/“unisex” PPE can be unsafe and I knew that tools aren’t designed for me but what do you mean I’m more susceptible to toxins because my skin is thinner and my body fat is higher !!! what do you mean I’m five times more likely to hurt myself if I’m carrying more than 25% of my body weight !!! my entire crew should read this part

the myth of meritocracy!! so good!! i really really enjoyed it and loved all the stats in this one. also the quote “you don’t have to be aware you’re being discriminated against to be discriminated against” was banger and I feel like this chapter needs to be read by male supervisors/managers and hiring leaders

the intro to the work section, firstly talking about women in the paid and unpaid labour force was quite interesting. really eye opening facts about the differences in men vs women regarding overtime and health benefits (what do you mean it’s a protective factor for men but not me???) and really drove home that “women are the exception, not the default” when it comes to what work is defined as

chapter 2 felt a little all over the place after starting with a more clear thesis but I still enjoyed it. public planning and women’s safety in public spaces IS necessary and the statistics on not much being done to accommodate or change it doesn’t surprise me- aside from Vienna (well done Vienna!).

chapter 1 on urban planning and transportation was EYE OPENING. really enjoyed seeing both ends of the success spectrum and comparisons of data on private vs public transport. only “flaw” was the data link for the global gender pay gap; I couldn’t actually find the numbers Perez referred to