An old stereotype says that females perform at a lower level than males in science courses, especially physics courses. However, according to a recent study, it couldn’t be more wrong. Female physics students at Texas A&M University performed just as well, and in some cases better, than male students in the course, researchers report. For the study, researchers from the Texas A&M Department of Physics and Astronomy gathered data from 10,000 students over the course of 10 years. All students had taken introductory physics courses, of which exam scores and final averages were analyzed. According to the data, there was no evidence that female students performed worse in these specific courses. Data was collected via a database that included all introductory physics courses and student averages over the decade. The courses included both calculus-based physics courses in which physics and engineering majors usually enroll, and algebra-based physics courses in which pre-med and life science majors usually take. The results indicated no association between student gender and overall performance in the course, contradicting the stereotype.