Resolution recognizing the efforts and contributions of outstanding women scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians in the United States and around the world.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

According to the National Science Foundation, a recent study of fourth graders showed that 66 percent of the girls and 68 percent of boys reported that they liked science. But something else starts happening in the elementary school. NSF found that by the eighth grade, boys are twice as interested in STEM careers as girls are. The female attrition continues through high school, college, and even the workforce.

Women with STEM higher education degrees are twice as likely to leave a scientific or engineering job as men with comparable STEM degrees. Despite the fact that women earn half of the bachelors degrees in science and engineering, they continue to be significantly underrepresented at the faculty level in almost all the S&E fields, constituting 28 percent in 2003 of doctoral science and engineering faculty in 4-year colleges and universities and only 18 percent of full professors.

The Commission on the Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering and Technology Development was established by Congress on October 14, 1988 through legislation developed and sponsored by Congresswoman Connie Morella, Republican from Maryland. The mandate of the Commission is to research and recommend ways to improve the recruitment, the retention, and the representation of women, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities in science, engineering, and technology education and employment.

In addition to the Commission, the NSF Research on Gender in Science and Engineering program has worked since 1993 to broaden the participation of girls and women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education fields.

One of the things research has discovered is that the more positive images you present of women in these fields in school, the more likely girls will want to enter into these fields later on in life.

So the resolution before us today honors the contribution of women in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, both in the United States and around the world. It also allows us to thank women for the contribution that they have made to these fields, women such as Madelaine Barnothey, the first woman in Hungary to receive a Ph.D. specializing in physics; or Rosalind Franklin, who received her degree in chemistry in 1951 from Cambridge University and was instrumental in putting together a detailed description of DNA; or Sophia Germain, an outstanding mathematician who developed the modern theory of elasticity, without which modern construction would be absolutely impossible.

Women have been pioneers in the field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics for centuries.

We owe it to girls growing up today to recognize these accomplishments,

accomplishments such as those of Maria Telkes, who was a physicist and pioneer in solar energy and designed and built a solar house in the 1930s; or those of Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, who was buried at Arlington Cemetery in January, 1992, and was one of the very first software engineers who helped both the military, private sector, and academia develop the foundations of modern digital computing.

We just can't discuss important women in history without recognizing the outstanding contributions of Marie Curie, a physicist and chemist, who is one of the only people to ever receive two Nobel prizes in different fields and the only woman to have won two Nobel prizes. Her Nobel prizes were awarded for her work on radioactivity and the discovery of the elements of polonium and radium.

I urge my colleagues to join me in support of the resolution before us today.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1180) recognizing the efforts and contributions of outstanding women scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians in the United States and around the world on Mother's Day, 2008, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on House Resolution 1180, the resolution now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise in support of House Resolution 1180, recognizing the efforts and contributions of outstanding women scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians in the United States and around the world.

In its 2007 Beyond Bias and Barriers report, the National Academy stated that in order to maintain its scientific and engineering leadership and increasing economic and educational globalization the United States must aggressively pursue the innovative capacity of all of its people, men and women.

While women have made substantial progress in some fields, such as the life sciences, they continue to be significantly underrepresented in other STEM fields such as engineering and computer science. The attrition rate remains higher for women than for men at all steps along the STEM pipeline. In fact, studies have shown that girls as young as middle school age are being turned away from many STEM fields.

There is no evidence that the gender gap is caused by a lack of female talent or potential. In fact, the top three winners in the highly prestigious 2007 Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology and the first prize in the 2008 Intel Talent Search all went to young high school women.

We are failing our young girls and women, and neither our colleges and universities nor our industries can afford such a loss of precious human capital in science and engineering. We can't make it with just 50 percent of the Nation's brain power.

I applaud the gentleman from Washington for introducing this resolution. It is fitting to recognize the efforts and contributions of outstanding women scientists and engineers and mathematicians in the United States and around the world, and I ask my colleagues to support House Resolution 1180.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Let me thank Mr. Hall for supporting this legislation and thank the gentleman who sponsored it. And I'm very pleased, Mr. Speaker, that he mentioned Ms. Connie Morella, whom I worked with from the time I arrived until she left on this very subject. And I hope that we are gaining more and more support to encourage our young women to stay involved in these STEM programs and recognize our achievers so that they can know that they are great examples.

I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am the proud sponsor of House Resolution 1180, which recognizes the important contributions of women to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and the health of many industries that have created new jobs, boosted economic growth, and improved our Nation's competitiveness.

Congress must continue to educate the public about the important role of women in society and recognize the key accomplishments of women in scientific fields. Furthermore, we must encourage more young women to pursue careers in science and technology fields by adequately funding STEM education in our schools.

Much is being done in the Pacific Northwest to achieve these goals. Seattle's Pacific Science Center remains an educational force in our region and continues to inspire students' interest in science. Similarly, the Museum of Flight recognizes the success of female aviation pioneers and helps young women discover career possibilities in the world of aerospace.

I am pleased that the Science and Technology Committee quickly brought this measure to the floor in a bipartisan manner, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it.