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Last year, mathematicians Theodore Hill and Sergei Tabachnikov submitted a paper on a mathematical model that attempted to explain why some studies have found greater variability in various traits among males than females of many species, including humans.
The Math Intelligencer accepted the manuscript, but the journal’s editor-in-chief opted not to publish the paper after four months, before it went on the journal’s website. During that time, the editor, Marjorie Senechal, a professor emerita at Smith College, had begun to receive emails from other researchers who had seen a version of the paper, including on arXiv, a preprint database, and who were, according to the editor, outraged about the manuscript’s content.
The researchers who sent her emails were, according to Senechel, worried that the paper would provoke “strong reactions” and would be interpreted as backing a sexist agenda. “The main reason for pulling the paper was ...
