My employer is hosting a medical technology conference where one of the sessions will bring together women panelists to discuss how they have been able to marry their professional and personal life in the male-dominated fields of medical technology and design.

The topic is not new. Lack of women in science and technology as well as their overall absence in leadership positions in business have been investigated in high-profile treatises like Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In" and Anne-Marie Slaughter's expansive, must-read article "Why Women Still Can't Have it All."

I am hardly as accomplished as these two and but I have a simple theory.

It's because we have bought hook, line and sinker the parenting a "Princess" philosophy, the same way we women have bought into two other vast retail conspiracies - Valentine's Day and Mother's Day.

As soon as my daughter was born, I had a choice between either purchasing purple or pink-hued clothes with flowers or butterfiles or princess-themed messaging, or dull, construction or sports-themed apparel. I believe in fashion, so I had to go with the purple and pink flowery stuff, while shunning the princess paraphernalia. And no dolls, Strictly no dolls.

But a question loomed.

Where was the purple dress that I could find at a Target or Macy's that expounded the virtues of science? Where was the onesie that screamed MVP - where MVP stood for Most Valuable Physicist - along with colorful designs of E=MC2?

Some parents resist the "princess" theme by encouraging their daughters to do sports hoping it will instill a sense of discipline and competitive spirit, or at the least help holding their own in future Superbowl parties. 

All very good, but that still doesn't mean the ranks of female professionals and science and tech will swell.  

And no, buying a Doc McStuffins doll is not going to help cultivate an interest in medicine either, but it will help Disney for sure. Dolls, I don't care what shape they come in and what message they appear to convey, all have the same message - the goal is to get girls to start to learn early how to play the role of a mom. Frankly they can learn to become a parent when they have child of their own.  

But if you want to encourage science and math, ditch the dolls and the tiaras and the pink tutu skirt for an abacus, some math apps on the iPad and a new attitude and respect for the world of numbers. Also, sit down and do the math problems with her, just like her dad pitches the baseball to help her get her swing just right or when they bake together. 

Read Isaac Asimov to them when they are old enough. Read books on science and technology that are also fun.

But tell her that sometimes math is just not fun. Multiplication tables aren't meant to be exciting. But it is mandatory that they learn it, no ifs and buts. It should become second nature just like washing hands after using the washroom is.

We have to resist the retail conspiracy of all things princessy just as we have to resist the urge to make math fun ALL THE TIME.

Because, exciting or not, multiplication tables will likely be far more helpful to her in coming up with the next breakthrough medical innovation. Much more so than the fun of knowing how many yards Adrian Peterson ran. Or the fun in dressing her up in those sparkly pink shoes.

-- By Arundhati Parmar, Senior Editor, MD+DI