Chapter 1: Introduction to STEM Equity

In the United States today, the funnel leading students to postsecondary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is constricted at best. Well, this is not true; the conduit could be too small but the funnel ginormous. For example, the close approximation for the equation for laminar flow through a conduit (i.e., not turbulent, given a direct path) is

FR is the volumetric flow rate of the liquid (e.g., gal/sec), Pi = 3.14159, R is the radius of the conduit, P is the fluid pressure at one end of L , P is the fluid pressure at the other end of conduit, N is the fluid’s viscosity, and L is the length of the conduit. The temperature dependency here is in N because the fluid’s viscosity depends on its temperature. So by the equation, the problem could be in the supply or in conduit between secondary and postsecondary education. It is likely to be a combination of the two, with a confounding for students of color and women.