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Roller derby athletes hip check science stereotypes #iamscience

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


Kevin Zelnio's #iamscience movement has launched a number of blogger origin stories and a Kickstarter project that has met its first funding goal (don't stop donating yet though). Alongside this movement is one launched about the same time via a tumblr and related to SoNYC. My colleagues and I wanted to find a way to contribute our voices and show that there are many types of science, and many types of scientists. These colleagues smash gender stereotypes every day, what's one more stereotype to add to our target hit zone?

Thirteen University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign scientists, all of whom skate for the Twin City Derby Girls.

Top row, left to right: Therafist, clinical psychologist; Anthrobrawlogist, biological anthropologist; Snarker Posey, legal information scientist; Doc Dementer, educational psychologist; Oh No Bobo, veterinarian; Killy Love-less, social scientist; MRSA, microbiologist.


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Bottom row, left to right: Jo Holley, evolutionary ecologist; Gaya Jenda, family scientist; Mrs. T, educational psychologist; F1, developmental psychologist; Punchwrap Supreme, reproductive toxicologist; Polly Nator, evolutionary biologist.

Are we science? You better believe we are science. If you don't...

We will come for you.

I am Dr. Kate Clancy, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. On top of being an academic, I am a mother, a wife, an athlete, a labor activist, a sister, and a daughter. My beautiful blog banner was made by Jacqueline Dillard. Context and variation together help us understand humans (and any other species) as complicated. But they also help to show us that biology is not immutable, that it does not define us from the moment of our birth. Rather, our environment pushes and pulls our genes into different reaction norms that help us predict behavior and physiology. But, as humans make our environments, we have the ability to change the very things that change us. We often have more control over our biology than we may think.

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