Ben Barres (1954–2017)

I picked this up so randomly, and got even more out of it than I expected. If you have ever heard of Barres (and you aren't in neuroscience), it is for writing what became a viral takedown of the statement by Larry Summers (then President of Harvard) that the reason women weren't more prominent in science is that they were innately unsuited for the field. As someone who was living as a woman all through his education and into the first few years of being a professor, he was uniquely suited show more to this task. This memoir, which Barres began writing after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was published posthumously.

The autobiography remains a bit uneven because Barres is writing for so many different audiences. Those who want his take on sexism in science academia, those here because they are interested in Barres' research in neuroscience, and those here for the trans angle. I was here for a mix of the above, but this book really blindsided me with a LOT of feels about what science graduate school and mentorship could look like. Barres does have some bad professors along the way — but the good ones? Wow. I spent a few days in a weird funk of anger about how differently my whole life could have gone had I experienced even a fraction of that mentorship.

But we don't need to unpack all of THAT in a book review. This is a fascinating document, and I'm glad that Barres was able to write all that he did before his death. show less

The author seems like he was such an inspiring man. Having grown up as a girl, he had a deep understanding of the struggles women face in science and used his newfound privilege after transitioning to speak up and advocate for and empower women in order to increase equality in the scientific world and beyond. As a queer scientist I would have loved to have gotten the chance to talk to him. The book is pretty short and I do wish that he had gone into a bit more detail about his life, show more especially surrounding his gender identity and childhood, but he did write it after getting a cancer diagnosis so I understand why. I enjoyed the style of these parts as it felt like he was having a conversation with you. I definitely feel like the introduction also contributes a lot to the impact the book has as it provides some more context (although I did feel a little sad while reading it as it did discuss his death. And at this point I didn't really know anything about him but the author of this segment did an incredible job building up the kind of person he was).

I will say that I think that most people will struggle with the segment that discusses his work - and it's a substantial chunk of the work. Neuroscience has quite a lot of technical terms and jargon and it reads a bit like a paper (although it doesn't go super in depth). I think that this part could have used an edit to make it more accessible to a wider audience. Don't get me wrong, is work is definitely interesting! I just feel like it' s not the easiest to grasp in its current form. show less

The late Ben Barres was truly loved. A brilliant scientist and neurologist, a devoted mentor, a hero in the LGBTQ+ community, Barres provides a brief biography of his life before and after transitioning from female to male. My heart went out to him for having lived in shame and discomfort for 40 years before he became truly himself. It was an eye-opening glimpse into how

But allow me to make a recommendation:
1. If you are science savvy, it does not matter what edition of this wonderful show more autobiography you read.
2. If you are like me, someone who really cannot follow the minutia about glial cells and microphages (whatever they are), you will be happiest if you read this book in paperback, hardcover or the Kindle format, so that you can skim the long passages on — well, from what I can gather some impressive scientific studies and medical advances. As I was reading the Audible edition, it was much harder to flip ahead. My enjoyment came from reading about Barres’ life and how differently Barbara Barres was treated from Ben Barres. show less

Potent short autobiography from a groundbreaking neuroscientist who mentored his trainees extraordinarily and also used his tenure and status to advocate for women and other minorities in science -- including tirelessly advocating for a non-sexual harassment clause for all NIH-funded conferences, which still has not yet happened (ostensibly for legal reasons).

I was mightily moved by his personal story, even though it's clear he was more comfortable reflecting and interrogating science than show more his own beliefs and motivations, and there's definitely some meat lurking beneath the surface there. I am deeply saddened that he died before I even knew of his existence. show less