Q&A: Scientist and Advocate BethAnn McLaughlin

The neuroscientist talks about her experiences with trying to change how the scientific community copes with sexual assault and harassment.

Written byAnna Azvolinsky

| 6 min read

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ABOVE: BethAnn McLaughlin (left) and her daughter on vacation in the Teton mountains of Wyoming
BETHANN MCLAUGHLIN

BethAnn McLaughlin is a Vanderbilt University neuroscientist who has started online petitions calling on the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to revoke the memberships of those found guilty of sexual harassment or assault. Through her advocacy, she got the website RateMyProfessors.com—which lets college students rate their professors—to drop its red chili pepper professor "hotness” rating.

McLaughlin spoke with The Scientist about how she got started on her advocacy, the various reactions to it, and why she’s made it a priority.

The Scientist: How did you got into advocacy?

Beth McLaughlin: I didn’t mean to get into advocacy. . . . But I just couldn’t stand it anymore. The thought that my trainees are facing the same problems I had when I graduated college. The ...

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Meet the Author

Anna Azvolinsky
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Anna Azvolinsky received a PhD in molecular biology in November 2008 from Princeton University. Her graduate research focused on a genome-wide analyses of genomic integrity and DNA replication. She did a one-year post-doctoral fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City and then left academia to pursue science writing. She has been a freelance science writer since 2012, based in New York City.
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