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On arrival in England she worked for a PhD in astronomy at an all-male [[St John's College, Cambridge]], and did research at the University's Cavendish Laboratory. While working for her PhD she had [[Sex reassignment surgery (male-to-female)|sex reassignment surgery]].<ref name=guardian>{{cite web|title=A gender for success| url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2004/aug/14/health.socialcare|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|accessdate=6 March 2014|date=14 August 2004}}</ref>She said ''Rachael'' spontaneously came up as her name one morning.
On arrival in England she worked for a PhD in astronomy at an all-male [[St John's College, Cambridge]], and did research at the University's Cavendish Laboratory. While working for her PhD she had [[Sex reassignment surgery (male-to-female)|sex reassignment surgery]].<ref name=guardian>{{cite web|title=A gender for success| url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2004/aug/14/health.socialcare|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|accessdate=6 March 2014|date=14 August 2004}}</ref>She said ''Rachael'' spontaneously came up as her name one morning.
On receiving her degree in 1982, she immediately went to US at the University of California, Berkeley as a Miller Research Fellow. In 1984 she returned to Cavendish.<ref>"Rachael Padman (1954 – ) physicist", ''[[A Gender Variance Who's Who]], 24 October 2008</ref>  In 1996, she was elected a Fellow of [[Newnham College, Cambridge|Newnham College]], one of three all-women colleges at the University of Cambridge.<ref name=garner>{{cite web|last=Garner|first=Clare|title=Fellows divided over don who breached last bastion|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/fellows-divided-over-don-who-breached-last-bastion-1257781.html|work=The Independent|accessdate=7 March 2014|date=25 June 1997}}</ref><ref name=featherstone>{{cite book|last=Featherstone|first=ed. by Mike|title=Body Modification|date=2000|publisher=Sage|location=London|isbn=9780761967958|pages=219–220|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EBs1PCbwF_0C&dq|edition=1st publ.}}</ref> She received opposition from some people, who argued, unsuccessfully, that Padman should not be made a Fellow as she was born male.<ref name=guardian/><ref>{{cite web|last=Reynolds|first=Flo|title=Arts history: Germaine Greer|url=http://www.concrete-online.co.uk/germaine-greer/|work=Concrete|accessdate=7 March 2014|date=19 February 2013}}</ref>
On receiving her degree in 1982, she immediately went to US at the University of California, Berkeley as a Miller Research Fellow. In 1984 she returned to Cavendish.<ref>"Rachael Padman (1954 – ) physicist", ''[[A Gender Variance Who's Who]], 24 October 2008</ref>  In 1996, she was elected a Fellow of [[Newnham College, Cambridge|Newnham College]], one of three all-women colleges at the University of Cambridge.<ref name=garner>{{cite web|last=Garner|first=Clare|title=Fellows divided over don who breached last bastion|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/fellows-divided-over-don-who-breached-last-bastion-1257781.html|work=The Independent|accessdate=7 March 2014|date=25 June 1997}}</ref><ref name=featherstone>{{cite book|last=Featherstone|first=ed. by Mike|title=Body Modification|date=2000|publisher=Sage|location=London|isbn=9780761967958|pages=219–220|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EBs1PCbwF_0C&dq|edition=1st publ.}}</ref> She received opposition from some people, who argued, unsuccessfully, that Padman should not be made a Fellow as she was born male.<ref name=guardian/><ref>Flo Reynolds, [http://www.concrete-online.co.uk/germaine-greer/ "Arts history: Germaine Greer" ''Concrete'', 19 February 2013.</ref>
 
A [[trans woman]],
 
At Cavendish, Padman was appointed Deputy Project Scientist for the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii in 1984. She worked there for four years until she became a University Lecturer in the Department of Physics, University of Cambridge, in 1998. From 2005 she has been primarily involved in the administration of teaching in the Department of Physics. She is Director of Education in School of Physical Sciences. At Newnham she is both teaching physics and serves as Director of Studies in Natural Sciences.<ref name=guardian/>
 
She was publicly outed in the press in 1996, that resulted in a controversy that led to the resignation of a colleague. That year Padman was elected Fellow of [[Newnham College]]. The college statutes allowed only female members in the institute. The Principal, Dr Onora O'Neil knew that Padman had undergone a sex-change operation. Famed feminist [[Germaine Greer]], who was a member of the college's governing body, strongly opposed the appointment, saying that Padman was a man and male.<ref name="guardian"/><ref name="garner"/><ref>{{cite web|last=Mistiaen|first=Veronique|title=Can Cambridge's All-women College Survive The Change?|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-08-24/features/9708240082_1_all-women-college-single-sex-college-germaine-greer|work=Chicago Tribune|accessdate=7 March 2014|date=24 August 1997}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Baty|first=Phil|title=The essential guide to sexuality|url=http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/features/the-essential-guide-to-sexuality/103547.article|work=TimesHigherEducation|publisher=TSL Education Ltd.|accessdate=7 March 2014|date=21 July 1997}}</ref> But Fellows, students, and staff of Cambridge University supported Padman, and she was admitted without further opposition.<ref name=garner/><ref name=featherstone/> Clare Longrigg published an article titled "A Sister with No Fellow Feeling" in the 25 June 1997 issue of ''[[The Guardian]]'' making charges on Padman and contained uncompromising remarks from Greer. The article was retracted on 19 March 1998 as information was found to be false, and the accusation made by Greer was considered groundless.<ref>{{cite web|title=When Germaine wants a job|work=The Guardian|accessdate=7 March 2014|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/19981201212018/www.pfc.org.uk/news/1997/gfolly02.htm|archivedate=1 December 1998 |date=1997|url=http://www.pfc.org.uk/news/1997/gfolly02.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Writer Watch: Germaine Greer |url=http://www.ljmaywatchwords.com/107744590|publisher=Watchwords|accessdate=6 March 2014}}</ref> After the bad publicity, Greer resigned from the college administration.<ref>{{cite web|title=10 things you should know about Germaine Greer|url=http://forbookssake.net/2014/01/29/10-things-know-germaine-greer/|work=For Book's Sake|accessdate=7 March 2014}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
<references>
<references>

Revision as of 13:39, 20 November 2017

Rachael Padman (born 1954) is a trans woman and a Physics lecturer at the University of Cambridge.

She was born in Australia, where she graduated in electrical engineering and worked on radio astronomy. In 1977 she came to England, and has said that one motive of her coming to the UK was a hope for an opportunity to address her gender issues.[1]

On arrival in England she worked for a PhD in astronomy at an all-male St John's College, Cambridge, and did research at the University's Cavendish Laboratory. While working for her PhD she had sex reassignment surgery.[2]She said Rachael spontaneously came up as her name one morning. On receiving her degree in 1982, she immediately went to US at the University of California, Berkeley as a Miller Research Fellow. In 1984 she returned to Cavendish.[3] In 1996, she was elected a Fellow of Newnham College, one of three all-women colleges at the University of Cambridge.[4][5] She received opposition from some people, who argued, unsuccessfully, that Padman should not be made a Fellow as she was born male.[2][6]

References

<references>

  1. Rachael's Story (autobiographical essay).
  2. 2.0 2.1 Template:Cite web
  3. "Rachael Padman (1954 – ) physicist", A Gender Variance Who's Who, 24 October 2008
  4. Template:Cite web
  5. Template:Cite book
  6. Flo Reynolds, [http://www.concrete-online.co.uk/germaine-greer/ "Arts history: Germaine Greer" Concrete, 19 February 2013.