photo credit: Christopher Chan

Mobile shopping company miBuys conducted a survey of 1,600 women on mobile phones and found that the overwhelming majority of them are open to more mobile marketing and mobile shopping.

These respondents love using the mobile web overall, this study shows; 94% said they use their phones to surf even when they’re at home and can access much more powerful devices, such as laptops and desktop PCs. These heavy mobile users are big on social sites — 86% access Facebook, Twitter or similar networks on their mobiles — and 93% said they’d feel lost without their cellphones.

Moving to another segment of the Venn diagram of women — cell phones and shopping — 74% of these same mobile-loving women said they sometimes shop for splurge items they might not necessarily need. The majority of these women also said they’d be open to learning about discounts, deals and event promotions on their phones.

MiBuys CEO Mark Bamber said in a release: “This research sends a clear message to advertisers that women are already engaged and eager to explore new cell phone services. It also supports our belief that cell phones and portable devices can already play a significant role in connecting retail brands with their customers. It is perceived that women are only just embracing cell phone services, but the truth is they’re already well beyond this point and now want access to the entire high street through their cell phone”.

Here are some other findings from the survey:

• 85% use the mobile Internet almost daily.
• 70% expect their mobile Internet usage to increase in the future.
• 84% have noticed mobile advertising, and 57% have clicked on mobile advertising.
• 67% are interested in receiving mobile coupons or vouchers.
• 93% are always on the lookout for bargains.
• 93% like being up-to-date with new technology.

We want to know from our female readers: Do you agree with these findings? Would you like to use your phone for more shopping or do you have more practical tasks in mind when you’re browsing the web via your mobile device?

Rebecca Zook is an online female math tutor who has been helping students get math into their brains for seven years. She blogs about learning at Triangle Suitcase.

Over half a million votes were cast to decide Barbie’s newest career. But even though Computer Engineer Barbie was developed in consultation with the Society of Women Engineers and the National Academy of Engineering, the new doll’s appearance has sparked controversy.

While some have embraced coder Barbie, others have attacked the concept, saying that her pink laptop, sparkly leggings, and trendy glasses are “too feminine” to be realistic.

The critics imply that real coders aren’t feminine, and feminine coders aren’t real. But women shouldn’t feel like they have to stop being feminine to work in technology.

The First Computer Programmer Was a Fashionista

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That’s right. The first coder was a lady. Ada Lovelace, over a century ahead of her time, is widely considered to be the first computer programmer. She was the first person to conceptualize and articulate what computers were capable of doing, and the first to foresee that computers could create artificial intelligence, generate graphics, and create music.

So, is Barbie’s outfit really that unrealistic? If the very first person to conceptualize a computer did so while wearing a girly up-do and a frilly gown, why can’t someone write great code while wearing pink platform crocs and a t-shirt that spells “BARBIE” in binary?

Women and Tech Today

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This false dichotomy — that you have to choose between being feminine and “looking the part” of a mathematician or scientist — might be part of what turns girls off from math and science in the first place.

Or maybe girls don’t aim for careers in math and science because they don’t see role models. Even Ada Lovelace had role models. Her mom, the “Princess of Parallelograms,” loved math and gave Lovelace a very intensive math education. And Lovelace was also mentored by legendary female science writer and polymath Mary Somerville.

Or maybe girls are afraid of being the only woman in their technology courses or workplaces. If that’s the case, their concerns are certainly warranted. Not only are fewer women entering the information technology field, but more women are leaving the field mid-career.

A recent Harvard Business Review report, The Athena Factor, notes that “52% of highly qualified females working for SET [science, engineering, and technology] companies quit their jobs, driven out by hostile work environments and extreme job pressures.” These women report that they lack mentors and feel intense isolation in the workplace.

Coder Barbie and the Future

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In 2010, maybe Computer Engineer Barbie would feel uncomfortable writing code on a pink laptop that matched her glasses in a workplace where she was outnumbered by men 25-to-1. But perhaps we should aspire to create a world where Computer Engineer Barbie and her gloriously pink accessories could realistically exist. Allowing a vision of an ultra-feminine computer engineer might, even subconsciously, open girls — and the rest of society — up to the possibility.

As a female math tutor, I used to feel the need to “tone down” my feminine style. I’d wear black slacks when working with my students for fear of appearing “unprofessional.” But then I decided to show my true fashion colors and wear my homemade dresses and sparkly barrettes when tutoring.

Since then, some kids have been openly relieved when they met me and found I didn’t look like their stereotype of a math tutor. The “math geek” stereotype in their brains was more intimidating and less fun than the real-life tutor wearing fuzzy pink boots.

You don’t have to choose between looking feminine and being good at math, science, and engineering. We need all kinds of people, all kinds of minds, and all kinds of geeks to solve our technology problems.

Party Win

Infomercial of the Day: Here’s all I have to say about the Hoodie-Footie Snuggie Suit: If you own this, I will not sleep with you.

Oh, who am I kidding — I’ll still sleep with you.

Actually, would you mind putting your Hoodie-Footie Snuggie Suit on before we do it? I sorta have a thing for women with no self-respect.

[videogum.]

(via The Daily What)

Professional and managerial women are downing almost twice as much alcohol as the lower paid, according to an official survey.

They are drinking an average of 10.2 units a week – more than a bottle of wine – compared with 6.5 units for manual workers.

While this is nowhere near the 15-unit safe limit for an individual, it is an alarmingly high average for the general population bearing in mind that some women don’t drink at all.

Middle class professionals are drinking more units a week than the working classes, according to new figures (photo posed by models)

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