Women of Math and Science

I was reading an article today about why there are not more women in the hard sciences - physics, chemistry, biology. According to a study cited in the article. only about 20% of physics Ph.D.’s are awarded to women. The article contained numerous anecdotes about women’s experiences in school and the often not-so-subtle pressure they feel to chose another area of study.

One student wasn’t allowed to take advanced science or mathematics in high school because her principal said “girls never go on in science and math.”

Another student was the only female in her AP physics class. She was teased by her male classmates: “You’re a girl. Girls can’t do physics.” She expected the teacher to put an end to the teasing, but he didn’t.

Women have made huge contributions to math and science. Here are a few notables:

Marie Cuire - a Polish/French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the only woman to win in two fields, physics and chemistry, and the only person to win in multiple sciences.  The second woman to win a Noble prize in physics? Her daughter, Irène Joliot-Curie.

Jane Goodall - a British primatologist, ethologist, anthropologist, and UN Messenger of Peace. Considered to be the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees, Goodall is best known for her 45-year study of social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees in Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania.

Grace Hopper - a computer scientist in the United States Navy, whose ideas led to the development of the widely-used computer language, COBOL. The USS Hopper is named in her honor.

Danica McKellar - an American actress, film director, book author and education

advocate. McKellar studied mathematics at UCLA, graduating summa cum laude in 1998.  She wrote four non-fiction books: Math Doesn't Suck, Kiss My Math, Hot X: Algebra Exposed and Girls Get Curves: Geometry Takes Shape, which encourage middle-school and high-school girls to have confidence and succeed in mathematics. She is currently the smartest cast member of Dancing with the Stars.

I think it’s important that people know what important contributions to science and math women have made over the years. Maybe knowing that others have gone before will help young women pursue their passion for math and science despite the obstacles.