I have to post this article from Thursday’s New York Times.  It’s right-on, down to the intimidating introductory classes and social drive to be active (or not) in web-communities.  I didn’t realize how popular e-zines or designing graphics were for girls–especially teens–but it makes sense.

Historically, girls and women have been expected to be social, communal and skilled in decorative arts.  “This would be called the feminization of the Internet,”[Pat Gill, the interim director for the Institute for Communications Research and an associate professor of gender and women’s studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign] said. Boys, she added, are generally taught “to engage in ways that aren’t confessional, that aren’t emotional.”

I am all about people using technology in their daily lives, and thrilled to hear that it’s accessible and engaging to people even younger than me.