Spotlight on Women in Science
Honoring women at the forefront of science
Meet the Woman Who Makes the James Webb Space Telescope Work
Jane Rigby, Webb’s operations project scientist, discusses how NASA plans to wring as much science as possible from the $10-billion observatory
Astronomer Vera Rubin Taught Me about Dark Matter—and about How to Live Life
The groundbreaking scientist ushered in a revolution in how we think about the universe. She also lived by a set of principles that made her an exceptional human being
The Little-Known Origin Story behind the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics
In 1949 physicist Chien-Shiung Wu devised an experiment that documented evidence of entanglement. Her findings have been hidden in plain sight for more than 70 years
Once Shunned in Antarctica, Female Scientists Are Now Doing Crucial Polar Research
Women are investigating critical climate crisis problems such as the stability of giant ice sheets
Female Botanist Published the First Ever Photo Book
Nineteenth-century researcher Anna Atkins collected specimens of algae and imaged them using the then cutting-edge blueprinting process
The Story of NASA’s Real “Hidden Figures”
African-American women working behind the scenes as “human computers” were vital to the Space Race
The First Lady of Engineering: Lost Women of Science Podcast, Season 3, Episode 1
Yvonne Y. Clark, known as Y.Y. throughout her career, had a lifetime of groundbreaking achievements as a Black female mechanical engineer. The third season of the Lost Women of Science podcast begins at the start of her story, during her unconventional childhood in the segregated South...
What Florence Nightingale Can Teach Us about Architecture and Health
The 19th-century nurse and public health researcher understood the importance of light in fighting and preventing disease
Sally Ride’s Enduring Legacy
America’s first woman in space worked to make STEM education more equitable and inclusive, with a special emphasis on encouraging participation by girls
Betty Shannon, Unsung Mathematical Genius
Her husband, Claude, helped create the computer revolution, but few knew that she was his closest collaborator
Maria Agnesi, the Greatest Female Mathematician You've Never Heard of
Born 300 years ago this month, Agnesi was the first woman to write a mathematics textbook and to be appointed to a university chair in math
Beatrice Finkelstein, the Woman Who Fed the Astronauts
Known fondly as the proprietor of “Bea’s Diner,” the nutritionist who created menus for our first spacefarers deserves to be better remembered
How Christiana Figueres Saved the Planet
By harnessing “female energy,” Christiana Figueres convinced humanity to take on climate change
One More Pioneering Woman in Science You’ve Probably Never Heard of
Elizabeth Stern’s research led the way to our modern understanding of the prevention, treatment and diagnosis of cervical cancer
The Women’s Health Pioneer You’ve Probably Never Heard Of
The 19th-century black “doctress” Rebecca Davis Lee Crumpler should be on everyone’s radar
Honoring a Pioneering Woman in Physics
Lise Meitner solved the problem of nuclear fission—and although she never got the Nobel, she is the only woman outside of mythology to have an element named after her alone
3 Revolutionary Women of Mathematics
Everyone knows that history's great mathematicians were all men—but everybody is wrong
The Forgotten Life of Einstein's First Wife
She was a physicist, too—and there is evidence that she contributed significantly to his groundbreaking science
Women in Science are a Force of Nature
Cast your vote for the unsung and insufficiently sung female heroes of science for a celebratory poster series from the Perimeter Institute
Women Are Creating a New Culture for Astronomy
A new generation of scientists are challenging the biased, hierarchical status quo
Lost Women of Science Podcast: Season One, The Pathologist in the Basement
Lost Women of Science digs deep to uncover stories of scientists that have long been overlooked
Who Was Alessandra Giliani, 14th-Century Teen Anatomist?
Was a teenager named Alessandra Giliani the Western world’s first female anatomist? In 14th-century Italy, women were strictly barred from medical research. One flouted that rule—disguised as a man...
