To: maafocus@maa.org Subject: MAA Focus Feb/Mar 2019. Date: 02 March 2019. Dear Dr. Jensen-Vallin, I have been a member of the MAA since 1974 -- for 45 years it has been my monthly pleasure to read the The American Mathematical Monthly, a charming and delightful publication. Of course I also receive MAA Focus and scan it with interest to see what is going on the MAA's version of the world. I have to say I found the current issue tiresome in the extreme. In article after article, I was bombarded by propaganda, claiming or implying, generally with little or no evidence, that minorities, especially women, were somehow excluded from participation in mathematics. The most egregious example of this comes from the "Pursuing Gender Equity" article, whose conclusion begins with a paragraph that it is impossible even to follow, let alone agree with. They begin with the statement that "The United States has a serious math problem", then go on to talk about "mathematical anxiety", whatever that is, then switch to (unspecified) "inequities", finishing up with the statement that "all" of these problems derive from the "dominance of the performance culture in the teaching of mathematics", which "systematically excludes women". These statements are apparently based on results of a "Stanford Study", justified for example by a "word cloud" and statements by an unknown number of students who could "bring their full selves to the table". Excuse me if I regard this as junk science. And it is the best documented of the various sermons given throughout the issue on "diversity" in mathematics. For the record, let me state my point of view on some of these matters: (1) I agree that "The United States has a serious math problem". Mainly, the culture does not seem to motivate native Americans to study mathematics, with the result that the best mathematicians are more and more of Chinese origin (whether male or female) -- maybe the Chinese are simply smarter, maybe they are naturally more disciplined, maybe they emerge from a more structured culture. (2) To do mathematics you have to be fascinated by it -- and that state of fascination will be there whether you do it individually or in some sort of collective. (3) Nothing would please me more than to have all those who have learned to love mathematics, whether male or female or African pygmies with bones in their noses, actually practicing it and enjoying it. (4) I agree that it is important to our society and to our future as a civilization to develop mathematical talent wherever it occurs. But in doing so we should avoid unsupported ideas about human nature. (5) Men and women are different, not only in obvious physical ways, but also in our capabilities and orientation to life. That being said, these differences are spread over a wide range, so that there is much overlap between the sexes. Moreover, the exact nature of the differences is not clear, nor is it clear the extent to which they are susceptible to environmental modification. In virtually all sports, for example, records for men are 10% or so better than those for women. This is because men are more muscular, bigger-framed, and so on, than women are on average. There are also far more male mathematicians, especially at the highest level, than women; many more engineers; many more taxi-drivers; many more plumbers and electricians. On the other hand, there are far more women studying biology, sociology, psychology. Are these deviations "problems"? I do not think so -- all I care about is that everyone is given a fair chance to succeed in whatever area they choose to study or work. (6) In our society today, with significantly more women than men in tertiary education, with incessant propaganda in the university about the rights of "minorities" amd women, it could well be argued that women have an advantage over men in any area of study. Certainly anyone who takes the contrary view needs to be very careful in gathering evidence and in drawing conclusions from it. In my opiniom, this care was noticeably absent from the current issue of MAA Focus. Above all, I read MAA Focus to find out interesing things about my colleagues, whoever they are -- I don't want to be bombarded with politically-correct, incompetently researched propaganda in the process. Sincerely, W. F. Smyth