Inferior: The true power of women and the science that shows it
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-22 14:57:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Angela Saini
- ISBN：000817203X
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
From intelligence to emotion， for centuries science has told us that men and women are fundamentally different。 But this is not the whole story。
Shedding light on controversial research and investigating the ferocious gender wars in biology， psychology and anthropology， Angela Saini takes readers on an eye-opening journey to uncover how women are being rediscovered。 She explores what these revelations mean for us as individuals and as a society， revealing an alternative view of science in which women are included， rather than excluded。
Shedding light on controversial research and investigating the ferocious gender wars in biology， psychology and anthropology， Angela Saini takes readers on an eye-opening journey to uncover how women are being rediscovered。 She explores what these revelations mean for us as individuals and as a society， revealing an alternative view of science in which women are included， rather than excluded。
Reviews
Ellie Aerts
，
3。5 rounded down Superior was far better， I think this one lacked the cohesive story that superior seemed to have。 I feel like she focused on odd topics， and really tried to discourage researchers from studying sex differences during a time when we’re just beginning to rectify female participants being left out of studies。 I think she could have highlighted that women aren’t inferior to men without insinuating that studying sex differences or including sex differences in your research is a bad t 3。5 rounded down Superior was far better， I think this one lacked the cohesive story that superior seemed to have。 I feel like she focused on odd topics， and really tried to discourage researchers from studying sex differences during a time when we’re just beginning to rectify female participants being left out of studies。 I think she could have highlighted that women aren’t inferior to men without insinuating that studying sex differences or including sex differences in your research is a bad thing （because it’s not， it’s good science that can save lives） 。。。more
a person
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Very journalisty， where the author clearly is tamping down their biases for the audience。 It's very mild and seems kind of targeted to people who will be willing to accept the implied equivalence of "scientific opinions on male-female differences in humans" and "misogyny in the most overt and crude sense"。 Some interesting science wars history， but not deep enough for my liking in many places， though I did enjoy the grandmother hypothesis chapter。 Makes me less interested in Superior as my next Very journalisty， where the author clearly is tamping down their biases for the audience。 It's very mild and seems kind of targeted to people who will be willing to accept the implied equivalence of "scientific opinions on male-female differences in humans" and "misogyny in the most overt and crude sense"。 Some interesting science wars history， but not deep enough for my liking in many places， though I did enjoy the grandmother hypothesis chapter。 Makes me less interested in Superior as my next read。 。。。more
May Ryan
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I do like that Saini quotes studies from the University of Utah throughout。 Good commentary on opportunities for women in science starting to become more commonplace。 Also Darwin was a big jerk。
Amie Jimenez
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Wonderful story。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Rage
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an interesting look at lots of science and some of the personalities behind various studies。 a big takeaway for me was that we should be careful when we read scientific studies （not news， but a good reminder）。 many interesting facts （chromosomes， bonobos， different cultures）。 it was also nice to hear about many various women involved in researching and advocating for women。
Hannah Noeline
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Excellent book focusing on the misrepresentation of women in science and how that has then in turn been a contributor to how society views males and females。 Would recommend this book to anyone who ever has had a conversation with someone about the "biological differences" between men and women。 Excellent book focusing on the misrepresentation of women in science and how that has then in turn been a contributor to how society views males and females。 Would recommend this book to anyone who ever has had a conversation with someone about the "biological differences" between men and women。 。。。more
Amyiw
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I read this on a suggestion from a GR friend their review And I guess I wasn't sure what this would put forward。 Mostly it is a lot of debunked science from the past and how much of the semi-recent is still being debunk or shown to really be something different than first conjectured by the "experts"。 Psychology， sociology， even anthropology， are far from exact sciences and experts are definitely biased by the world and society in which they live for the conjectures， sometime called "facts" tha I read this on a suggestion from a GR friend their review And I guess I wasn't sure what this would put forward。 Mostly it is a lot of debunked science from the past and how much of the semi-recent is still being debunk or shown to really be something different than first conjectured by the "experts"。 Psychology， sociology， even anthropology， are far from exact sciences and experts are definitely biased by the world and society in which they live for the conjectures， sometime called "facts" that they conclude。 The facts are the statistics， the discoveries of patterns of behavior， but then educated meanings and then conclusions， are sometimes far from exact， if even correct。 With women and how they differ from or are equal to men， I think we are still evolving and we continue to do so。I enjoyed reading this book， perhaps a little more in the beginning as most of the information was new。 By the time we get to the end， which is closer in history of today， I had heard of many of the studies that she reviews。 I think most would find this an interesting read。 。。。more
Amanda
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This was a thoughtful and accessible book。 Saini presented research on the topic of biological differences between the sexes in a thorough manner， whether it contradicted women’s supposed inferiority or not。 As a feminist， it was easy for me to lean toward the idea of the sexes being equal （or even women being a little superior）， but there was no smugness here。 The author simply presented the studies and didn’t shy away from the flaws in much of the topic’s work。 Due effort was taken to speak wi This was a thoughtful and accessible book。 Saini presented research on the topic of biological differences between the sexes in a thorough manner， whether it contradicted women’s supposed inferiority or not。 As a feminist， it was easy for me to lean toward the idea of the sexes being equal （or even women being a little superior）， but there was no smugness here。 The author simply presented the studies and didn’t shy away from the flaws in much of the topic’s work。 Due effort was taken to speak with experts on both sides of the debate， and the information about individuals classified as intersex was an interesting and inclusive take。I will also add that I did this one as an audiobook， and the narrator was lovely to listen to！ There were some minor issues in the editing， though， with long pauses at times that felt jarring。 Overall， this book was not exactly groundbreaking for anyone at all versed in the topic， but did a fantastic job illustrating the ambiguity of the subject， as well as shining a light on the difficulty of conducting unbiased research as inherently biased beings！ I would recommend this for anyone interested in feminism， science and biology， and sex-based stereotypes！ 。。。more
Lo
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Being a feminist I applaud the idea of highlighting how women have been neglected by doctors historically， or suppressed by the patriarchy。 I don’t suppose men are entirely useless but neither are women。 To think that women have just been towed along my men is folly。 True the patriarchy as it became more established did suppress women and make it harder to contribute。 That’s why I found the chapters about nature vs nurture nice。 Is patriarchy natural， inbred？ Are women less-important naturally？ Being a feminist I applaud the idea of highlighting how women have been neglected by doctors historically， or suppressed by the patriarchy。 I don’t suppose men are entirely useless but neither are women。 To think that women have just been towed along my men is folly。 True the patriarchy as it became more established did suppress women and make it harder to contribute。 That’s why I found the chapters about nature vs nurture nice。 Is patriarchy natural， inbred？ Are women less-important naturally？ Just good for making babies and caring for them？ I think this book answers those questions but also shows we have a lot more work to do in answering them and those like them。 。。。more
Glen Redpath
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Illuminating， fascinating and shocking; I found this to be a real page turner as it shone a light on the origins of much of the 'conventional wisdom' about the evolution， traits and role of women。 I believe this should be required reading for anyone who works in a scientific field， and in general by anyone who wants to develop their critical thinking as it showcases many examples of poor science underwritten by sloppy thinking and biases。 It was well written， engaging and good journalism; I woul Illuminating， fascinating and shocking; I found this to be a real page turner as it shone a light on the origins of much of the 'conventional wisdom' about the evolution， traits and role of women。 I believe this should be required reading for anyone who works in a scientific field， and in general by anyone who wants to develop their critical thinking as it showcases many examples of poor science underwritten by sloppy thinking and biases。 It was well written， engaging and good journalism; I would highly recommend。 。。。more
Andréa
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Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss。
T。R。
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A compelling and thought-provoking book。 Deserves to be read widely， or like in our case， heard （the audio book is pretty good， read really nicely by Tania Rodrigues）。
Liz
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I struggled with a rating here。 Here and there were pockets of really interesting information but overall it was not compellingly written。 Very dry， and I was so annoyed by the little pullout quotes that were pulled out from an excerpt a page or two after the pullout and disrupted your reading！ Also， it wasn’t quite what I thought it was going to be， which isn’t necessarily a fault of the book but it is what it is。 Probably 2。5 really。
Easty
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Required reading for any feminist book club or group。 Discussions will be hot and valuable！ You may have a different opinion of Darwin when all is said and done。
Ruth Lemon
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This was an accessible introduction to the science behind society’s presumptions about gender and how what we think of as the differences between men and women are based in outdated or incorrect scientific research。 Highly recommend！
Natalie A
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Absolutely amazing book that had me invested from the first introduction pages。 The author does a great dive into the biases found in science that have had such a profound effect on shaping society as we know it。 I was aware of some of the examples that were discussed， but I learned so much from reading this book。 The author also does a fantastic job of breaking apart some highly scientific elements to be understandable， and I also appreciate how she conducted interviews with scientists from a v Absolutely amazing book that had me invested from the first introduction pages。 The author does a great dive into the biases found in science that have had such a profound effect on shaping society as we know it。 I was aware of some of the examples that were discussed， but I learned so much from reading this book。 The author also does a fantastic job of breaking apart some highly scientific elements to be understandable， and I also appreciate how she conducted interviews with scientists from a variety of different viewpoints。 I highly recommend giving this book a read。 。。。more
Amit
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It's chock full of interesting ideas， but unfortunately the writing style of scientific authors just isn't for me， as they all seem to follow the trope of hypothesis， challenge， conclusion。 It's chock full of interesting ideas， but unfortunately the writing style of scientific authors just isn't for me， as they all seem to follow the trope of hypothesis， challenge， conclusion。 。。。more
Valarie
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My Women's History Month reading this year focuses on how women have been treated by science。 This was an excellent introduction to the broader issues。 My Women's History Month reading this year focuses on how women have been treated by science。 This was an excellent introduction to the broader issues。 。。。more
Aaron Clasky
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More like 3。5 stars。 I wanted to like this book more than I did。 I think it does a good job presenting information and drives home the importance of challenging assumptions and asking different questions， but it leaves a lot of unanswered questions （which， in some cases， is kind of the point） and I feel like it's just lacking a lot of detail。 Still a worthwhile and important read for anyone， especially people working in STEM。 More like 3。5 stars。 I wanted to like this book more than I did。 I think it does a good job presenting information and drives home the importance of challenging assumptions and asking different questions， but it leaves a lot of unanswered questions （which， in some cases， is kind of the point） and I feel like it's just lacking a lot of detail。 Still a worthwhile and important read for anyone， especially people working in STEM。 。。。more
Jasmine
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A good discussion of why science is bias。 What it tends to come down to is that people studying people， yeah that’s bias。 There are some very depressing moments where you have to wonder how to feel that people told this author recently that they have proven women are mostly good at having babies。
Mariya
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This is book of ideas not a science book。Somewhat interesting。 This book feels dated。 Writing is disjointed， no particular structure。 Author is cherry picking facts。
Spraying Bricks
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A scary realisation that most scientific research is both biased and unchallenged。 How social constructs have in turn played a huge part in the evolution of our biology and in favour of the ever insidious patriarchy that the majority of the globe endures。 A great insight to what is going on in the world of science that has influenced our social constructs。
Adele
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This book primarily reveals the limits of science at explaining human behaviour。 Parts of it - especially the parts describing male led research into the differences between the sexes - made me very angry。 Despite some strong points made， overall this book lacks direction in what is a very complex discussion。
Vale
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Davvero bello， molto accurato e illuminante。 È un exursus sulle principali teorie scientifiche errate che spiegano o spiegavano pregiudizi di genere。 È incredibile come rimanga più impressa nella memoria culturale una teoria che spiega e giustifica gli stereotipi che una teoria che li smentisca。 Un libro che consiglio se si vuole avere una prospettiva su come sono stati spiegati scientificamente per secoli le discriminazioni e il maschilismo。 Un po' pedante se non si è abituati a leggere un inte Davvero bello， molto accurato e illuminante。 È un exursus sulle principali teorie scientifiche errate che spiegano o spiegavano pregiudizi di genere。 È incredibile come rimanga più impressa nella memoria culturale una teoria che spiega e giustifica gli stereotipi che una teoria che li smentisca。 Un libro che consiglio se si vuole avere una prospettiva su come sono stati spiegati scientificamente per secoli le discriminazioni e il maschilismo。 Un po' pedante se non si è abituati a leggere un intero libro scientifico， ma molto molto interessante。 Una lettura sicuramente istruttiva e che fornisce strumenti scientifici per contrastare ancora chi usa vecchie teorie discriminatorie e infondate。L'unica pecca （avrei messo 4，5 stelle ma non si può） è che non ha una Bibliografia， cita gli studi， gli scienziati， da che università o da che libro si riferisce ma avrei preferito di ogni concetto una bibliografia in fondo da dove partire per approfondimenti。 。。。more
Jac
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Fascinating content and conclusions， but way too verbose。 I would have preferred a bullet point summary。
Karen Middlebrook
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Shocked to the core to discover Darwin's attitudes towards women and how that has influenced modern thought。 Saini discusses how characteristics such as resilience and endurance are of equal， if not more， importance than brute strength。 She also hypothesizes about the role of women in traditional hunter-gatherer societies and what archaeology may have missed。 An interesting， research-backed read。 Shocked to the core to discover Darwin's attitudes towards women and how that has influenced modern thought。 Saini discusses how characteristics such as resilience and endurance are of equal， if not more， importance than brute strength。 She also hypothesizes about the role of women in traditional hunter-gatherer societies and what archaeology may have missed。 An interesting， research-backed read。 。。。more
Bree
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I began reading this book with some assumption that I'd come out the other side with a more clearly defined perspective on the evolution of society and women's roles within it。 I can't say that I have any more answers than I did beforehand （and a lot more questions）， but I have appreciated Saini's thorough research and review on the topic。 It's pretty mind blowing how little we truly know about half of our population。 It's a great book that has collated hundreds of years of research and made the I began reading this book with some assumption that I'd come out the other side with a more clearly defined perspective on the evolution of society and women's roles within it。 I can't say that I have any more answers than I did beforehand （and a lot more questions）， but I have appreciated Saini's thorough research and review on the topic。 It's pretty mind blowing how little we truly know about half of our population。 It's a great book that has collated hundreds of years of research and made them digestible。 Definitely worth the time。 。。。more
Emma
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A really interesting read and well delivered。 I listened to this one as an audiobook and can recommend this format。
Esme Kemp
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Riveting， accessible and well-researched。 Highly， highly recommend。 Trigger warning: male scientists being sexist twats。
Leila Abdelrahman
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