What's the Conway Effect and What Does It Say About Tech?

The transgender inventor, Lynn Conway, is largely to thank for the device you’re using right now. But you might not know her name, because the contributions made by women, BIPOC and the LGBTQ+ community in the tech industry have long been dismissed – sometimes even erased. This phenomenon has been dubbed the "Conway Effect" by Lynn Conway, the late transgender microchip genius whose inventions forever changed our world. What exactly is the Conway Effect? And what does it say about our culture?

Hosted by Harini Bhat, In The Margins covers the history they didn’t teach in school, exploring obscure, yet captivating tales that offer unique insights into their time and place.

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0:00 Intro to Lynn Conway and the Conway Effect
1:20 Stats on men and women in the tech industry
2:06 Lynn Conway's education and career background
2:57 Conway's transition and termination from IBM. VLSI invention
4:36 2018 essay 'The Disappeared: Beyond Winning and Losing" and the Conway Effect explained
6:43 Conway's advocacy and recognition
9:21 Close. Have you experienced the Conway Effect?