[UB]'s comment about folks figuring out how to use machines gave me a great idea for a show. Junkyard Wars is a great show, but those folks are pretty dang skilled in the first place. They know how to work machines, plus they have an expert to advise them.

Sorority Junkyard Wars would pit 2 sororities against each other to build/make something out of junked parts. There would be no expert advice. Each machine would have the instruction manual and they would have internet access to look stuff up. They would have a week.

This would be a great show for many reasons:1 - fighting, bickering folks 2- group problem solving - how do the women approach the problem? Anarchically, division of labor, or what? 3 - complete novices learning how to do something useful and dangerous from scratch. 4 - women as makers and creators 5 - utter humiliating failure and jubilant, against all odds victory 6 - babes, babes babes!

Having this be sororities would make for better TV because college age women, especially the sorority set, are not generally expected to be capable in a machine shop. Both success and failure would make for a good show.

Certain sororities would be crowd favorites, because of individual skilled / flamboyant people, gritty team spirit, babe factor, or what not. These sororities would be brought back to compete against one another in the playoffs.
-- bungston, Nov 23 2003

[UB]'s comment here inspired this idea. http://www.halfbake...achinists_27_20Club
[bungston, Oct 05 2004, last modified Oct 17 2004]

Survivor?
-- yamahito, Nov 23 2003


Just a week?
-- shad, Nov 23 2003


//college age women , especially the sorority set, are not generally expected to be capable in a machine shop//

-Phi Sigma Rho (National Sorority for Women in Engineering)

-Alpha Omega Epsilon (Professional Engineering Sorority)

-Alpha Pi Mu (President: Sara Paulisick, Nat'l Honor Society for Engineering Technology Students)

-Chi Epsilon (President: Heather Smith, Nat'l Honor Society for Chemical Engineers -will come in handy for designing cool rocket batteries)

...Heh heh, bungston. Mayabe now is a good time to use jutta's advice and fasten your seatbelt.
-- Tiger Lily, Nov 23 2003


Well now... here in 2016, there's a push to get more females involved in STEM careers, so the time for this may have come ;*)
-- smendler, Jun 22 2016


// there's a push to get more females involved in STEM careers //

... which will, as usual, fail.

The women involved in science and technology do it because they like it.

The men involved in science and technology do it because they like it.

The women involved in science and technology are, by and large, extremely good at what they do.

Science and technology demand a particular mindset and world view. Proportionately more men have this mindset than women. This can be linked to proven nerophysiological differences between males and females.

This functionality is innate. It can be encouraged, but not taught or instilled.

Some men go into nursing, or fashion. Some women are astronomers or chemical engineers. As long as there are absolutely no gender-related barriers to entry to education or careers, there isn't a problem
-- 8th of 7, Jun 22 2016


I do approve of recent efforts to get kids of all genders and especially girls to write code. Clearly some women write code. However a recent visiting of computer-oriented summer camps for little kids found that nearly all participants are boys. Why should this be? There is some push or trend early on such that more boys than girls are interested in computerly endeavors.

Maybe it is innate but I am skeptical. I think it is cultural. One could easily imagine a world where the writing of code was considered feminine, like arranging flowers or writing poetry, with boys relegated to dirty outdoor fighting and such. Code really is gender neutral, like math or logic. I think civilization can only be helped by having men and women participate equally in creation of the systems and things that buttress it.
-- bungston, Jun 22 2016


I have to admit that I have never understood the US phenomenon of fraternities/sororities. It's very strange.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 22 2016


// There is some push or trend early on such that more boys than girls are interested in computerly endeavors. //

No, we totally disagree. Long -term observation of a set of fratenal twins, male and female, shows that from a pre-linguistic, crawling stage, (deliberately) presented with the same toys, the female liked playing with soft toys resembling living creatures, and the male ignored all toys and was fascinated by electrical plugs, anything metal, cables, tools and anything potentially dangerous.

At the time of writing, the female likes horses, makeup, perfume, fashion, and has bothered to learn just enough about computers for schoolwork and social media. She also has the world view of a 35-year old. Her brother owns an oscilloscope, communicates with his parents in grunts but writes long, complex emails to fellow Übergeeks, can't understand why people don't enjoy configuring ADSL2 routers, and is nearly ready for Assimilation.

"Under the most closely controlled conditions of illumination, hydration, pressure, temperature and nutrition, the organism will behave just as it damn-well pleases".
-- 8th of 7, Jun 22 2016


//Long -term observation of a set of fratenal twins, male and female,//

That sort of thing can land you in jail, [8th].
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 25 2016



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