IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 52
WIE from Around the World
Options Opening Up
for More Women
Diverse cultures relish accademic and career choices
Spreading Technology's
Benefits in India
Sundance and science meld
r
Ramalatha Marimuthu, a dedicated educator, is no less dedicated to improving
village life.
The day Ramalatha Marimuthu
became the first female engineer in her
entire community should have been
occasion for a great celebration, right?
Well, it wasn't. Marimuthu, who lives in
the town of Rajapalayam, Tamil Nadu
state, India, explains: "I felt very proud
of myself and my family was supportive
of me. But since I was not yet married,
"After I got married, I was forgiven
and given my due credit," continues
Marimuthu, "but even then our family
comes first over our career and higher
studies."
Achieving and Encouraging
In an impressive feat, Marimuthu has
managed to achieve it all and has spent
much of her own time encouraging others to achieve the same. After graduating
from Anna University in Chennai with a
people in my community were critical
B.E. in electronics and communications
of me."
engineering, she went to teach in a small
Mixed reactions like these are more
polytechnic college for a year and immecommon than one might think in coundiately fell in love with education.
tries around the globe. While in America
Affirms Marimuthu: "For the past 21
women are lucky to have the support of a
years I have been teaching in polytechnic
society that encourages them to pursue
and engineering colleges and have never
their dreams of education and profesregretted my choice of career."
sional careers, in India, simply being
She moved on to a government-sponfemale can often be the sole determinant
sored polytechnic college where, for six
of one's future. "If a girl is highly educatyears, she ran the school's new computer
ed, it becomes difficult to find a groom,"
science department. Here, she recalls, "I
says Marimuthu. This is because it is
learned many things in being a teacher,
considered important for a girl to be
lecturer, administrator, and a counselor."
married before the age of 23-hard to
The students learned much from her as
accomplish if she is attending school-
well with her implementation of a
and the subsequent increase in educaminiproject course, later expanded to
tion and age increases the bride's dowry.
include an annual exhibition, in which
her students could develop
practical training and experience.
For the next seven years,
Marimuthu worked as a lecturer, then as a senior lecturer, and eventually
The Madras
assistant professor in a rural
branch of IEEE
village's engineering college.
WIE took the
time to visit a
In addition to continuing
home for
the miniproject course and
destitute women.
exhibition, she assisted students in the creation of solution manuals for the
conceptual problems in
some popular system design
books and organized the
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MWIE.2008.925807
52
IEEE WOMEN IN ENGINEERING MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2008
1942-065X/08/$25.00©2008 IEEE
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - Cover1
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - Cover2
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 1
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 2
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 3
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 4
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 5
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 6
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 7
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 8
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 9
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 10
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 11
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 12
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 13
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 14
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 15
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 16
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 17
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 18
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 19
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 20
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 21
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 22
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 23
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 24
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 25
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 26
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 27
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 28
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 29
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 30
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 31
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 32
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 33
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 34
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 35
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 36
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 37
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 38
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 39
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 40
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 41
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 42
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 43
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 44
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 45
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 46
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 47
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 48
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 49
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 50
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 51
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 52
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 53
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 54
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 55
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - 56
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - Cover3
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - June 2008 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_june2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_june2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_june2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_june2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_june2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_december2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2014
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2014
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2013
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2013
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2012
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2012
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2011
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2010
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2010
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2009
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2009
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2008
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_summer2008
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ieee/womenengineering_winter2007
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com