  The gender gap in computer science (CS) research is a well-studied problem,
with an estimated ratio of 15%--30% women researchers. However, far less is
known about gender representation in specific fields within CS. Here, we
investigate the gender gap in one large field, computer systems. To this end,
we combined data from 53 leading systems conferences with external demographic
and bibliometric data to evaluate the ratio of women authors and the factors
that might affect this ratio.
  Our main findings are that women represent only about 10% of systems
researchers, and that this ratio is not associated with various conference
factors such as size, prestige, double-blind reviewing, and inclusivity
policies. Author research experience also does not significantly affect this
ratio, although author country and work sector do.
  The 10% ratio of women authors is significantly lower than that of CS as a
whole. Our findings suggest that focusing on inclusivity policies alone cannot
address this large gap. Increasing women's participation in systems research
will require addressing the systemic causes of their exclusion, which are even
more pronounced in systems than in the rest of CS.
