BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • Trending

Female scientists post 'distractingly sexy' photos

  • Published
    11 June 2015
Share page
About sharing
BBC Trending
What's popular and why

Female scientists have been sharing "distractingly sexy" photos of themselves after a feminist website encouraged them to respond to comments by a Nobel laureate.

Nobel Prize winner Tim Hunt was roundly criticised when he detailed his thoughts about the "trouble with girls" at a conference of science journalists. "Three things happen when they are in the lab," he said, "you fall in love with them, they fall in love with you, and when you criticise them they cry."

He said his comments were meant to be "light-hearted, ironic comment", but whatever the intention, it went over like a heavy metallic dirigible in a field with some widely acknowledged gender issues, external. Hunt has now resigned from his position at University College London.

On Thursday the hashtag #DistractinglySexy, external began taking off, with more than 10,000 tweets in a matter of hours. The trend was prompted by a shout-out by the feminist online magazine Vagenda, external which urged female scientists to share pictures of themselves at work. WARNING: the photos below are not graphic in the slightest.

Lab coats were a common theme ...Image source, @StephEvz43
Image caption,

Lab coats were a common theme ...

... with many making the point that science gear is about as far from distracting as you can getImage source, @dspitzzz
Image caption,

... with many making the point that science gear is about as far from distracting as you can get

Some men joined in as wellImage source, @FliesinLakes
Image caption,

Some men joined in as well

Another common theme was notable female scientists, such as Marie Curie, the first female Nobel Prize winnerImage source, @AmyRemeikis
Image caption,

Another common theme was notable female scientists, such as Marie Curie, the first female Nobel Prize winner

And of course there were plenty of wry jokesImage source, @scientist_me
Image caption,

And of course there were plenty of wry jokes

In most Twitter storms over sexism there's usually a debate of sorts but in this case nearly all of the most popular and repeated tweets, external mentioning Hunt are critical of his comments.

Blog by Mike Wendling, external

Next story: The pitched battle over the European Games

baku2015Image source, STOYAN NENOV

The European Games kicks off in Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, on Friday. It's the first Olympic-style sporting festival for the continent - but a hashtag first used by organisers and originally meant to celebrate the games has been turned on its head by human rights campaigners. READ MORE

You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, external, and find us on Facebook, external. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending.

Top stories

  • Live. 

    Asylum seekers can stay at hotel in Epping after government wins appeal

    • 5976 viewing6k viewing
  • Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

    • Published
      2 hours ago
  • Zelensky rejects proposals for buffer zone to end Ukraine war

    • Published
      34 minutes ago

More to explore

  • Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

    Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, a middle aged woman with short grey hair, stares intently at the camera. She is wearing a pink jacket
  • Why has Kamala Harris' security detail been withdrawn?

    Kamala Harris at a podium with three Secret Service agents in the background during a trip to Zambia in 2023.
  • How a leaked phone call derailed the Thai PM's career - and the Shinawatra dynasty

    Thailand's suspended prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra arrives for a press conference in Bangkok on July 1, 2025. She can be seen smiling as she walks through a doorway in a dark green blazer which she is wearing over a white shirt and white and blue floral skirt.
  • Football Manager 25 would have damaged us forever, says maker

    A rendered promo image for Football Manager. A female manager stands on the sidelines of a football pitch. She's wearing white shoes, and a black suit with her hands in her pockets. It's evening time as the sun appears to be setting. The pitch is lit up, with players wearing red kits and white kits. A male referee stands further away with a flag in hand.
  • What is chickenpox and how can I get my child vaccinated?

    A boy with chickenpox has used calamine lotion on his spots to reduce itching
  • Emma Stone dazzles Venice with alien kidnap drama

    Emma Stone attends the "Bugonia" red carpet during the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025 in Venice, Italy.
  • 'India put us on the boat like captives - then threw us in the sea'

    Soyed Noor (centre) and some of the other refugees speak to the BBC via a video call from Myanmar
  • A 'joyful' girl and a boy who loved sports - Victims in Minneapolis shooting identified

    From left: Harper Moyski, 10, and Fletcher Merkel, 8. Harper is smiling at the camera with wind in her hair. Fletcher is leaning on a railing and wearing a red shirt while smiling
  • What has changed 20 years on from Hurricane Katrina?

    • Attribution
      Weather
    A flooded street in New Orleans with damaged houses, debris and an overturned vehicle
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    Bank share prices tumble after calls for tax on profits

  2. 2

    Zelensky rejects proposals for buffer zone to end Ukraine war

  3. 3

    Cycling race website censors name of Welsh village

  4. 4

    Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

  5. 5

    US to stop Palestinians attending UN meeting in New York

  6. 6

    Trump ends Secret Service protection for Harris

  7. 7

    Madeleine McCann suspect to be released in less than three weeks

  8. 8

    Three teenagers killed in Highland crash

  9. 9

    Doctor arrested over posts about son's rape victim

  10. 10

    Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch's secrets to successful marriages

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

  • Rolf Larsen investigates the case of a missing child

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    DNA
  • Comedian Bob Mortimer chooses his desert island tracks

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Desert Island Discs: Bob Mortimer
  • Freddie Mercury: from iconic shots to private snaps

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    A Life in Ten Pictures: Freddie Mercury
  • When an Olympic badminton match caused controversy

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Sporting Witness: Shuttlecock scandal
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.