Presenting new, groundbreaking ideas can be intimidating. Standing behind your work, is imperative. Even though Cecilia Payne's professor eventually admitted that her theory was correct, he never drew attention to the fact that he once rejected it. Instead he published his own "version" of the theory, corroborating Payne's, and it caught on so well in the astronomical community credited him with the discovery. In her autobiography Payne leaves us with some advice: “I was to blame for not having pressed my point. I had given in to Authority when I believed I was right…I note it here as a warning to the young. If you are sure of your facts, you should defend your position.”
This still happens more than we care to know.
This has happened so often. Even during the race to uncover the structure of DNA, Jim Watson and Francis Crick stole Rosalind Franklin’s data,and ‘forgot’ to credit her.
The socioeconomic impact on women when intellectual properties, proposals, and ideas are overtaken, not given credit, and told are not significant is immense. Envision where Dr. Payne's research and discoveries would have traveled...... even when women do this to other women, they say, "It was just an oversight." When millions of dollars are involved in the "idea," who receives the credit increases their paycheck for decades or half a century. When one person does this repeatedly to other younger researchers whose career suffers or advance? Younger researchers like Dr. Payne or undergraduates' careers can be stunted losing earnings, authorship, and career advancement values leading to stipends for graduate school or fellowships. Experiencing this from women by women lets one understand the value of their ideas. There are consistently more ideas to come from the same person... When we rise together we are better! Imagine sharing authorship and the value you could have brought to that person as a leader or mentor. Karma does happen.
Still happens today. I have colleagues both male and female who have taken credit for my work.
She is on my list beside Rosalyn Franklin and Flourence Nightengale and the 100,000,000 others erased by weak men. Note it was Einstein’s first wife who read him a passage in Maxwell’s 1882 book — “Anyone who takes the speed of light as a speed limit in the universe seriously will change everything in physics”. We have Einstein notes for nine papers that started or that changed direction that week
When the ones leading are just cherry picking. This cherry picking is a disease. Leaders should promote and enable others to grow. Than they are good leaders. But blaming and taking the credit for an idea somebody else had is stealing and not leadership.He shouldn’t not have been given credit for it. He should have promoted her. Really bad a….
The answer “why” this has occurred so many damn times for so many years is (drumroll)🥁….the male EGO. I will need the sisterhood and male allies to support my new, groundbreaking idea that will soon be presented. Hint: Women MD’s and RN’s say it’s “biologically brilliant.” Idea💡: Follow me, please, asked with humility. 🌻
this a great example of how bad a peer review system can become. I quote „I do not believe that this paper is significant“ these are the words that as an editor I commonly find in reviews although there is no debate or arguments about why a paper is not significant. And, an advisor can truly destroy the student.
Thanks for sharing. In a male dominated world, especially back then, how could this woman be that smart? She was not only smart, she was smarter than her professor. He couldn’t have that, could he.
* Breakthrough Coach * Empowering aspiring women professionals who feel frustrated and stuck, to break through their barriers and live the life that lights them up. An Inspirational Speaker and Engaging Facilitator too.
2wSadly there are way too many stories of discoveries by women which are ignored and then given credit to men for.