And Now, From the Woman Poised to Run the Fed ... Janet L. Yellen at the Federal Reserve in Washington. There is no question that women are underrepresented in economics. This situation is changing, but only slowly," she said in 2008. Last week, after President Obama nominated Janet L. Yellen, the Brooklyn-born, Brown-and-Yale-educated economist, to lead the Federal Reserve, commentators praised her intellect and expertise. But they were also quick to celebrate the fact that she would be the first woman to hold the top job at the 100-year-old central bank. Fairly typical was the sentiment expressed by Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan economist, who wrote on Bloomberg View: "Tonight, I feel reassured that my daughter's economic future is in good hands. I also plan to tell her that she, too, can grow up to become the most powerful economist in the world. It's a potent stimulus. Ms. Yellen seems more at ease speechifying in the realm of monetary policy and inflationary models than discussing her gender. But over the years, she has occasionally been asked about being a female economist, providing a bit of insight into how she has viewed her own rise in a male-dominated field. As quoted in a 1995 Fed publication: I've had a lot of opportunities in my life. I don't feel that I've faced discrimination. I've had every chance to succeed and more, and I think that's what all women should have. From a 2008 Q. & A. published on a French educational Web site: This situation is changing, but only slowly. I believe that the causes of this underrepresentation are deep - the situation is similar to that in many scientific fields. Economics is highly mathematical, and the underrepresentation in part reflects the underachievement of women in math and science more generally. Moreover, fields like economics in which there are a relatively small number of women tend not to be particularly welcoming or supportive to women who do enter the field. One factor which promotes success is good mentoring. Another is opportunities for co-authorship. ... Things are changing, however. I believe that the representation of women in graduate programs in economics is rising and many more women are being appointed to faculty positions at top institutions. The pace of promotion to higher levels remains disappointingly low, perhaps because of difficulties that women particularly have in reconciling the demands of tenure-track jobs with family life. Personally, I have been fortunate because I had wonderful mentors at all stages of my career and I am married to an economist who has not only been a "mentor" to me, but also a longtime co-author. At a speech last April: At the highest levels in central banking there are very few women, but I am pleased that the representation of women is increasing a lot at other levels, at lower levels of central banking and in the financial markets and institutions more broadly. We're really seeing women getting ahead and making a difference and moving up to the highest posts and I really think that's something that we're going to see increase over time and it's time for that to happen and it's a great development.