Refashioned Barbie dolls encourage girls to pursue tech, science careers

SALT LAKE CITY－When Nalini Nadkarni was a kid, she'd run home from school, climb up a maple tree in her parents' backyard and spend an afternoon there with an apple and a book.

That time in the treetops set the tone for the rest of her life: She's now a forest ecologist at the University of Utah. She has dedicated her career to studying rainforest canopies.

She's also always looking for new ways to get people interested in science, be it through fashion made with nature imagery to giving science lectures at the state prison.

Nadkarni's childhood memories have spurred her to interest children in science. After her own 6-year-old daughter asked for a Barbie, Nadkarni decided to refashion the iconic doll as a scientist-explorer wearing rubber boots rather than high heels.

"Lots of girls, and some little boys, love Barbie," Nadkarni said. "It's almost aspirational, they want to be Barbie."

That was about 15 years ago. Nadkarni said Barbie's maker, Mattel Inc, wasn't interested in the idea then, so she decided to redo dolls herself, using gear she collected.

She scoured thrift stores and eBay for Barbie dolls and enlisted help from volunteer tailors. She called the creation "Treetop Barbie" and began selling them at cost on her website.

Last year, Mattel began working with National Geographic to create a new line of scientist Barbies. Nadkarni has a long-standing relationship with National Geographic, so when it reached out for help, she quickly agreed.

Nadkarni joined a team of female scientists advising Mattel as it created a line of dolls that includes a Barbie marine biologist, astrophysicist, photojournalist, conservationist and entomologist.

For Nadkarni, the company's investment in the dolls reflects a broader cultural shift toward recognizing women in science, math and technology that could spark an appreciation for science even among kids who don't end up entering the field.

It's not known, though, how career Barbies might affect kids' aspirations. A 2014 study by Oregon State University found that girls who played with the dolls told researchers they could do fewer jobs than boys－even if they played with a doctor Barbie.

The study didn't examine the girls' reasoning, but researchers speculated that Barbie might be an inherently sexualized doll, said Aurora Sherman, associate professor of psychology at Oregon State University, one of the paper's authors.

Putting the same doll in a professional outfit likely won't do much to change perceptions about what women can do, she said. But it might provide a starting point for conversations about women in science and math.

AP-XINHUA