Listen to the following audio recording about nature and gender in modern science. In the recording, Wollstonecraft’s views are discussed with Gina Rippon, Professor of Cognitive Neuroimaging at the Aston Brain Centre within Aston University.
You might want to listen to the recording through once and then listen again in order to answer the questions.
As you follow the discussion, note down any answers to the questions below, using the timings as a guide:
1. How does Rippon think a modern scientist would reframe Wollstonecraft’s question, ‘Are differences between men’s and women’s characters natural?’ (00:25)
2. When asked whether there is a consensus among modern scientists on how to answer this question, what two controversies does Rippon highlight? (02:01)
3. Does the question matter, according to Rippon? (05:52)
4. What is ‘stereotype threat’, the phenomenon Rippon gives as an example of a scientifically measurable phenomenon? (07:38)
