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>>andren+(OP)
Hi everyone. I'm a woman with a math degree who just completed a computer programming certificate. I've wanted to study math my whole life, and I wasn't exposed to programming as a field of study until college.

I just wanted to state that, for the record, having these sorts of discussions on hacker news is extremely distressing to me. I've worked hard to get the accreditations that I have, and I usually enjoy the things I read on this website. But just imagine for a moment how all this appears to an aspiring programmer when she wakes up in the morning and checks her favorite technical content aggregator.

Like, yeah, none of you are saying that ALL women are less capable than ALL men, but what I'm reading here is the subtext. When I pursue a career in this field, how will my coworkers perceive me? Will I be treated with respect? Or will I be seated next to someone who is convinced that there is a gender war going on, and thereby offended by my very presence?

>>novia+bm
I think a lot of people here don't really think about the effects their words have on other people, no matter the topic. I have been guilty of that too, both in online comments and in real life. "Guilty" is maybe even the wrong word, it can be very useful! I've asked Timothy Gowers once at a conference if he has ever written a program, and he said no! So you know more than he does when it comes to computer programming, just take that as a starting point and not the comments here :)