As part of Under the Microscope's ongoing mission to map the terrain for women in science, technology, engineering and math, I've compiled a list of blogs by and about women in science and technology that you might want to check out. Maybe you won't end up bookmarking all of them, but you should definitely take a look. In no particular order, I give you my list of eight great blogs.

1. Sciencegeekgirl (blog.sciencegeekgirl.com) is written by Stephanie Chasteen, a science writer and educator with a Ph.D. in physics and a love for podcasting. Her posts often have an educational angle -- recent posts have titles like "Hands-on class activities on the cell," "How do I teach about climate change?" and "Can I be killed by a bullet falling from the sky?" (The answer to that last one: probably not.) Many of her posts include links to videos, PDFs and other media that let you dig deeply into topics that interest you. 

2. Cocktail Party Physics (twistedphysics.typepad.com) is a group blog that brings a fun attitude to science, especially where it appears in the media. You know, stuff you could talk about if you wanted to sound smart at a cocktail party. The Twilight movies are covered, as are zombies, the ionosphere, the world's smallest snowman (0.01 mm wide) and cocktails themselves. The focus is on science, not physics, so don't let the name scare you away.

3. Science-professor.blogspot.com is the home of FemaleScienceProfessor. She's a research professor at a large university whose pen name gives her the freedom to talk about some of the frustrations of her job. A recent post broke down her 2009 entries by topic, which gives a good idea of what you'll find when you go there. Three-quarters of her posts are about academic issues, one-fifth are about being a woman -- in her field and in general. Her cats and other miscellany make up the rest. If you are in academia (or very curious about it) you are likely to find a lot of interesting articles.

3a. If you like FSP you might also check out FemaleEngineeringProfessor at femaleengineeringprofessor.blogspot.com, which operates on the same model. Her blog is newer and is updated less frequently, but she covers many of the same topics from an engineering perspective. And there's also YoungFemaleScientist (youngfemalescientist.blogspot.com), a postdoctoral student in biomedical science.

4. Dotfiveone.com is a techy blog by software and electrical engineer Maria Webster (aka Ubergeeke). She posts news about women from the tech world and profiles women who are having a big impact there. She also has a handful of neat how-to posts, from building a marshmallow gun to troubleshooting circuits. Her posts can be a little short, but the blog is much-needed publicity for women in tech fields.

5. Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Hyde are actually the same woman, a biology postdoctoral student who writes at drjekyllandmrshyde.blogspot.com. She recently gave birth but that hasn't stopped her from blogging about working in a group lab, reviewing papers for a scientific journal and in vitro fertilization. Although her blog is anonymous, her writing focuses on her personal life, especially on her experiences with infertility issues. This includes discussion about emotions, ethics and -- naturally -- the joys of having a child.

6. Chipchick.com bills itself as "Tech and Gadgets from a Girl's Perspective," and the mostly-female writers on the site review all the new gadgets and gizmos women might want. Refreshingly, that's not just pink cases for iPods. There is good coverage of some of the offerings from the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show, which just ended. Computers, cameras, apps, robots, stools with built-in speakers -- the site's reviewers cover them all and more. With multiple posts each day you'll never lack for things to covet. Also check out chipchicklet.com, the sister site with tech for kids.

This is far from a comprehensive list of blogs by, for, or about women in science and technology. There are tens, even hundreds of blogs in this category. These are just the ones I have found and enjoy. If there's a blog that you think should be on this list feel free to add a link to it in our comments section.

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KN January 13, 2010 68.192.154.84	Great list! I've got a few additions as well; www.scienceblogs.com/aetiology/ The author is an assistant professor of epidemiology. It's a well written and interesting blog. The most recent post (Dec.6,09) is particularly pertinent. It addresses the issues of gender representation in scientific publications. Also: www.scienceblogs.com/grrlscientist (this is a personal favorite, because I love birds) The writer is an evolutionary biologist.

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