Can you link to some of this large body of research? I keep hearing it mentioned but I've never actually seen evidence. That's certainly not something that should have happened but it's also not necessarily indicative of a larger pattern. And yeah, Tim Hunt is old and out of touch.I do have to say that I very much disagree with your second point, though. There's a lot of research that suggests girls are discouraged from STEM fields from a very young age, starting as early as elementary school.
I have a very distinct memory of being told by an elementary school teacher that boys were better at math and that I should be a stay-at-home mom. I don't think it's much of a coincidence that after that, I barely paid attention in science and math classes until I was in high school.