Introduction to
Career Advice for Life Scientists
T
he Women in Cell Biology traces its origins to
1971, when a small assembly of Yale colleagues
determined to organize a gathering of the few
women attending the 11th Annual Meeting of the
American Society for Cell Biology in New Orleans that
year. They posted flyers on the back of bathroom stalls
and thirty women showed up.
The first sustained effort of this pick-up group was a
“newsletter”—a bimonthly mimeographed job—
featuring entries as diverse and important as sexist
advertisements in scientific journals, job opportunities
(though the jobs had not been advertised) and ACLU
rulings that women should not be required to use their
husband’s names, and that single women should qual-
ify to receive loans and hold mortgages.
In the subsequent thirty years, women in cell biolo-
gy and The Women in Cell Biology have achieved suf-
ficient progress as to make early concerns seem almost
quaint. But the challenges faced by women in science
today are, while more subtle, still real, and still attract-
ing the commitment of dedicated cell biologists. We are
proud of contributing to that history.
One of the keys to the success of the Women in Cell
Biology is that its activities and services have served
the many male members of the ASCB and the scientific
community as well as its women. This has never been
so true as in the past several years, when the challenge
of students and post-docs in establishing a satisfying
career in the life sciences has become acute. In
response, the WICB has given high priority to pro-
grams, events, publications and awards that support
the career aspirations of scientists. In its way, the
Women in Cell Biology Committee has become the
heart and soul of the cell biology community.
This volume represents selected articles from the
acclaimed Women in Cell Biology column of the
award-winning ASCB Newsletter, those ranked byW. Sue Shafer
Chair, Women in Cell Biology Committee
The American Society for Cell Biology
1994-
Zena Werb
Chair, Women in Cell Biology Committee
The American Society for Cell Biology
1998-
CHAPTER 1 • THE HEAD GAME 1