Suse, so your position is that any link which comes from sub-reddits which you don't like is not worth considering?
I watched part one, most of it I already knew but the way the American scientist described his findings was interesting and not something I'd considered before.
People in modern Liberal countries are free to follow their natural inclinations so the innate gender differences become more apparent whereas people in less developed societies with fewer options for personal growth are naturally going to be more driven toward the best paying, most prestigious jobs. According to this Dr Lippe it goes a long way to explaining why in India and the middle East there are more women training to be scientists and engineers than in the West.

No point in getting into the full complexity of this topic, it would be wasted on OLO. All the analyses I've seen (on both sides) are cr*p. So just one point...

" whereas people in less developed societies with fewer options for personal growth are naturally going to be more driven toward the best paying, most prestigious jobs. According to this Dr Lippe it goes a long way to explaining why in India and the middle East there are more women training to be scientists and engineers than in the West.'

There's one major thing wrong with this analysis ... in India and the Middle East, science and technology jobs may be the 'best paying, most prestigious'.

This is definitely not so in Australia! Most scientists here, male and female, are lucky to get any job, let along a prestigious best paying one. Many give up and change career to support their families. Some try to do research while working at something else to make a living (some are really dedicated: I knew one guy who worked in a hardware store and did research on the side; one who did research on the dole; another sold their house to pay for their research ... I could go on). If you're lucky enough to get a university job, it will be short-contract dependent on research funding which has a success rate of ca. 15%. If you worked for CSIRO, chances are your branch was closed down and you were made redundant.

So, maybe women are just too smart and pragmatic in Australia to go into such a risky area as science and technology. My advice to aspiring young scientists (including in my own family): go ahead if you are truly passionate about science but do not expect to get a job.