"I was a safe candidate to diversify the board, but RCA ended up with a woman who had the strongest technical background of the group," Selby smiles. "I could understand all their mumbo-jumbo on microprocessors."

Avon did not know of Selby's history of skin research, so her medical knowledge was a pleasant surprise for the company.

Combining the corporate world with the scientific is an endeavor Selby says she would like to expand.

"I am interested in the public understanding of science, and I use gender as the lens to illuminate what is going on in science," she says.

The only female in her class who concentrated in physics, Selby has always been keenly aware of gender differences in the sciences. She is currently working on a gender and science project at the Radcliffe Public Policy Institute.

"I'm deeply concerned about the lab climate at universities and how they affect the future of women in science," Selby says. "If labs really want women, then we have to tell them what our needs and interests are."

Reflecting on her ground-breaking experiences in the scientific community at Radcliffe and in the corporate patriarchal world, Selby remembers her climb to success fondly.

"I am a big feminist, but I struggle to understand sexual harassment," Selby says. "I try to respect and appreciate [the victims'] difficulties but it was a different time under different conditions."

"There wasn't a sense of competition," she laughs. "If anything, the boys were very protective."

In her role as resident tutor, Selby says, she hopes to advise students interested in academic research on corporate possibilities.

"Nowadays there is an intense career focus," Selby says. "It is sad to find a beautiful liberal arts place to be losing interest."

"It is inherent in a system of pre-professionalism, but it still makes you sad," she says