Superpoderosas: the podcast of women in science and technology from Maldita.es

María José Calderón, theoretical physicist of condensed matter, and the day you (yes, you) got into a superconductor

We may not be very clear, a priori, what a superconducting material is and the concept may sound distant to us, especially if we add that it can be related to levitation. However, “many people have surely gotten inside an MRI machine,” a medical tool that uses a magnetic field created precisely by a superconductor. Come on, to understand each other (although it is not like that as it is) “you may have even gotten inside a superconductor.” This is part of what María José Calderón, theoretical physicist of condensed matter at the Madrid Institute of Material Sciences of the CSIC, told us in the fourth episode of Superpoderosas. María José was also co-founder of the 11F project for the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. You can listen to the talk with Maldita.es on both Spotify and Ivoox .

Lorena Fernández, computer engineer, and the need for scientific references around the house

When she tells young girls about science, Lorena Fernández has one goal: «We do not want girls to pursue STEAM careers, we want them not to be discarded , which is a very important nuance.» Lorena has managed, among many things, to be co-creator of the game Nobel Run table researcher and a reference researcher accessible to girls and adolescents who have participated in the Inspira STEAM program, of which she is a mentor. The protagonist of the third episode of #Superpoderosas defines herself as a “salsera” computer engineer , an expert in gender perspective in technology with a focus on artificial intelligence and director of Digital Identity at the University of Deusto. She is interested in showing the social facet of researchers such as Hedy Lamarr, Rosalind Franklin, Joy Buolamwini… and the impacts they have had beyond academia, from being movie stars to facing social smear campaigns. You can listen to the talk with Lorena on Spotify and Ivoox . 

Marta Macho Stadler, mathematician, and why mathematics is not a ‘thing for geniuses’

In the second episode of #Superpoderosas, Marta Macho Stadler, who is involved in a large number of activities to disseminate mathematics, talks to us about why this branch should not be considered ‘a thing for geniuses’ and how education in girls and boys interferes with who end up deciding to dedicate themselves to it. Marta is a doctor in Mathematics and a mathematics professor at the University of the Basque Country and the face behind the blog of the Chair of Scientific Culture of this same university, Mujeres con Ciencia . His goal of her? Tell the history of science a little closer to reality and through women. You can listen to the new installment of the Superpoderosas podcast on both Spotify and Ivoox .

Ángela Nieto, biochemistry, and how the cells in your body find their place and know what their function is

In the first episode we speak with Ángela Nieto , who has been studying the process by which our cells specialize, are placed in their place in our body and each one fulfills its function for more than 30 years  . Her work seeks not only to better understand how our body works, but also to learn more about diseases such as cancer. Ángela is a biochemist and cell biologist and researcher at the Institute of Neurosciences of the Higher Council for Scientific Research and the Miguel Hernández University. She has won the Ramón y Cajal National Research Award and the L’Oréal-UNESCO International Award for Europe for Women in Science. Don’t miss everything he told us! You can listen to it on Spotify or Ivoox .

What is Superpoderosas?

Are science and technology hostile territories for women ? According to UNESCO, “girls are often raised with the idea that STEM disciplines are male subjects and that female skills in these fields are innately inferior to those of males.” The result, in many cases, is a possible impact on girls’ confidence and interest in these subjects.

This limits the references of women scientists and technologists for girls and young people, perpetuating the idea that they are preferably male territories, in addition to leaving out half of the population of a field in which society relies to generate knowledge and solve problems. big problems of our daily lives and our world. 

In this context, Superpoderosas emerges , a project through which we aim to increase the presence and visibility of women among the people who help us with their knowledge, their superpowers: we are looking for more women who want to share their scientific knowledge and help us disseminate it and combat myths and hoaxes. about.

Hence this podcast , thanks also to the help of the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology . Hence these four episodes that will allow us to get closer to the daily reality and the experiences and points of view of four women researchers.

⚡️#SUPERPODEROSAS, OS ESTAMOS BUSCANDO⚡️

En @maldita queremos aumentar la presencia de mujeres expertas en nuestro trabajo. ¿Eres científica, investigadora, ingeniera, sabes mucho sobre un tema?

Tus conocimientos te hacen Superpoderosa: ¡únete! https://t.co/XEcuMWJqxX

🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/8T5RoXf9xH

— Maldita.es (@maldita) September 14, 2022

Superpoderosas  is  a project created by Maldita.es in collaboration with FECYT that seeks to increase the presence of scientists and experts in public discourse through collaboration in the fight against misinformation.