Women in Science: Celebrating Inventors Who Broke Barriers. From an earlier time, women have not only achieved excellence in Science but also broken barriers made for them by their hard work and confidence. They proved they are equally worthy of education in every field, just like men. Especially in the field of science, women have attained great success. To know more about the topic “Women in Science: Celebrating Inventors Who Broke Barriers,” read the complete article.
Women in Science
When we hear words like science or scientist, we often imagine great scientists like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, and Stephen Hawking. But are there only males who are considered the greatest scientists? No, there are women also who contributed in Science and innovations. But their names are left off the rosters despite their significant contribution in science and math.
There were eras where women were not even able to get formal education and were only bound to do household chores. But there were many women who soon started opposing this thinking and got proper education and became role models for other women. Many female scientists have come out of the shadows of history. They had to navigate many difficulties in getting an education and becoming scientists.
Celebrating Inventors Who Broke Barriers
There were many women who broke the barriers of society and achieved great success in the field of science. Let’s discuss some of them.
Marie Curie
Marie Curie was a Polish-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize for her work in chemistry and physics, and she was also the first person to win a Nobel prize twice. Marie and her husband revolutionized research on radioactivity and discovered two elements: polonium and radium. She also discovered that Radium can be used as a cancer treatment.
Stephanie Kwolek
Stephanie Kwolek made an unexpected discovery that led to the creation of synthetic fibers so strong, not even steel bullets could penetrate them. Despite her work, she never received the money she deserved and was passed over for promotions in favor of men. Her most significant discovery was Kevlar®, a heat-resistant material that’s five times stronger than steel but lighter than fiberglass.
Grace Hope
Grace Hopper was born in 1906 and she was best known as one of the first innovators of computer programming. In 1934, she earned the honor of becoming one of the first women to acquire a PHD from Yale University for mathematics. One of the crowning achievements of her 44-year career was the development of computer languages written in English, rather than mathematical notation—most notably, the common business computing language known as COBOL, which is still in use today.
Rosalind Franklin
Rosalind Franklin was born in 1920 and is well-known for her excellent work in discovering the double helix structure of DNA. She worked with other scientists Francis Crick and James Watson, who were able to complete the DNA research and won the nobel prize. They didn’t give her credit for her work and she was overlooked by them just because she was a woman. She passed away due to ovarian cancer four years before her male colleagues were awarded.
Ada Lovelace
Ada Lovelace was born in 1815. She was an English mathematician and one of the most important women in STEM history. She was primarily known for her work on Charles Babbage’s early mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytic Engine. She published one of the first algorithms ever to be carried out by a machine. She is often considered to be one of the world’s first computer programmers.
Katherine Johnson
Katherine Johnson, born in 1918, was an exceptional American mathematician and played a pivotal role at NASA. She was hired by a predecessor of NASA as a kind of human computer, responsible for completing complex calculations to support space engineers. She played a major role in calculating key trajectories in the Space Race – calculating the trajectory for Alan Shepard.
Hedy Lamarr
Hedy Lamarr was an Austrian-American actress and inventor who pioneered the technology that would one day form the basis for today’s WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth communication systems. Her discovery greatly contributed to fighting World War II, yet her technology was never fully recognized until recent decades. Her brillian mind was ignored and her beauty took center stage.