Scientific objectivity is a myth – cultural values and beliefs always influence science and the people who do it

People are at the heart of the scientific enterprise. Matteo Farinella, CC BY-NC

Even if you don’t recall many facts from high school biology, you likely remember the cells required for making babies: egg and sperm. Maybe you can picture a swarm of sperm cells battling each other in a race to be the first to penetrate the egg.

For decades, scientific literature described human conception this way, with the cells mirroring the perceived roles of women and men in society. The egg was thought to be passive while the sperm was active.