キャリアニュース2020年8月1～6日

For Jonathan Losos, tiny Caribbean islands and their reptile inhabitants are test tubes of evolution. The morning of 17 October 1996 started as usual for Jonathan Losos. The evolutionary biologist donned a broad hat and slathered on sunscreen, then headed by boat to several unnamed islets off Great Exuma Island in the Bahamas. Three years earlier, he and ecologist David Spiller had introduced local lizard species there to learn how they would compete in a once lizardless place. The pair spent the day snaring lizards, noting their exact locations, and taking stock of the insects, spiders, and vegetation. They were worried about reports of an impending hurricane, but the locals seemed confident it would veer off and spare the islands, as usual. Not this time, however. The next day, Losos and Spiller helped their hotel owner board up the windows of their beachfront cottage on Great Exuma as Hurricane Lili bore down on the island. As the wind picked up and the first squalls dumped rain

“Do you plan to have children?” The question came out of nowhere. I was sitting in a professor's office, interviewing for a postdoc position, when the topic suddenly shifted from my science to my womb. I paused, unsure how to respond. I didn't feel my personal life was any of the professor's business. But I was interested in the position, and I worried that I might not get it if I refused to answer. So I told him details about my personal life that I never imagined sharing with a stranger. > “The entire ordeal has left me feeling helpless.” That interview was in Japan, where his question—I've since learned—isn't unusual. But I'm not from Japan. I grew up in Taiwan, and it was unusual for me. I wished I told him I thought his line of questioning was inappropriate. I worried he'd ask the same question to other interviewees in the future and make them feel just as uncomfortable. It was also demoralizing to be judged based on the odds that I would have children. “Shouldn't my academi