"Mitchell strives for two goals in her writing: accurate science and worthy female role models. "I came from a science background, and I felt compelled to get the physics right, damn it," she said. Scientists deplore the inaccuracies that turn up in many sci-fi novels.
"I wanted to see more intelligent female role models," Mitchell added. Better portrayals will please men, too, she said, since "guys like strong female protagonists."
The panelists expressed strong views about the relations between the sexes within the field of science.
Mitchell, 32, found that her path as a scientist did not make her unattractive to men. In fact, she said, being the only woman in a physics class gave her favorable dating odds.
But Dazzo, who went to school in an earlier era, was tougher on her male classmates: "It was them and their slide rule, and I didn't want to know what they were doing with their slide rule," she said.
But when Dazzo fell in with other science-fiction fans, she found intelligent men she could talk to who were not put off by her science background. "Being one of the guys wasn't bad, when the guys weren't stupid. They weren't the best-looking guys, but brains count." "

Sci-Fi Women Want Brains, Brawn