Failing to Succeed

With Good Reason

Failure is a key part of the scientific process. But Gertrude Fraser says women in STEM aren’t often given the same leeway to fail as their male colleagues. Plus: Ken Ono applied his mathematics research to help swimmer, Kate Douglass, shave 4 tenths of a second off her breastroke. He says it took countless failures to save just a tiny fraction of time, but it ultimately proved to be the difference between winning and losing. Kate won gold at the Paris Olympics in the women’s 200 meter breaststroke. Later in the show: When Mona Danner was a kid, her father used to say: if you don’t A-S-K you won’t G-E-T. Now she’s paying that wisdom forward. She teaches seminars on the art of negotiation to help women in STEM break through the gender pay gap. And: Josephine Rodriguez says talent alone isn’t always enough for students to succeed in STEM. They need outstanding teachers and opportunities to develop. She’s dedicated much of her career to broadening participation in STEM.