The 2009 Nobel Prizes show us that women can be passionate and perseverant. We are fighting a battle for equality and this year a number of women have proved us right – we can think, we can discover, we can explore and we can win – just like the male of our species. I’d like to believe that this is more than pure accident, and that seeds of equality planted years ago are bearing fruit in the victory of these women. If we see greater numbers in the future years, I might be right – the world might be leaning toward better times for women.

any times the anti-discrimination laws that exist to protect female employees are counterproductive and act as double edged swords. A woman is faced with the choice of either accepting that those gender biased questions will come her way or understanding that if she admits to her employer that she does plan on having a family, her prospects of getting the job or being promoted will diminish. The problem is fundamental, structural and cultural, built upon a workforce that was primarily created for men, by men and designed to accommodate a man’s needs, when a woman’s domain was domestic.