Women in Science: Meet a Mathematician, a Physicist, and a Geologist Through Art

Last week was Ada Lovelace Day, a celebration of women in science, technology, engineering, and math. Historically dominated by men, these fields have recently grown more welcoming of women, though sadly a few challenges linger. But there's nothing like role models for inspiring the scientific spirits of today and tomorrow! And Marie Curie isn't the only one out there--history is rife with lesser-known but no less fabulous female scientists, engineers, and mathematicians.

Ada Lovelace (1815-1852) is a prime example: though ALD has raised her profile, she's not yet a household name. But as the world's first computer programmer, she deserves to be. She gets extra credit because her programs were written for an entirely theoretical machine, Charles Babbage's analytical engine. Though the analytical engine was never realized, Babbage's notes on a much simpler device, the difference engine, were finally translated into reality 120 years after his death. One of these machines is housed at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, where you can also learn more about Lovelace. Or, for those who prefer to learn everything via the internet, check out the fantastic footnotes in The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage. In addition to being a serious nerd, the author is a professional animator. Lovelace is lucky to have her as a re-animator! Heh.

[Madame Wu woodcut image]

Speaking of portraits of women in science, check out this woodcut of experimental physicist Chien-Shiung Wu (1912-1997). Wu emigrated from China to America in 1936 to complete her doctorate at UC Berkeley under Ernest O. Lawrence. She used her expertise in beta decay to prove a suspicion of her theoretician colleagues: that the weak force disobeys the law of parity. The theoreticians won a Nobel Prize in 1957. Whether Wu’s exemption from the award represents bias against women or experimentalists at the time (the other guys were Chinese too, so it wasn’t sinophobia), who knows, but a couple of decades later Wu got the first Wolf Prize. She died at 84, but would have been 100 this year.

[Another image by Willoughby]

Women like Lovelace and Wu are inspiring in part because of the old-time gender views they had to overcome. But contemporary women scientists make important role models too, and in fact, one of these is the artist behind the Madame Wu woodcut. Geophysicist Eleanor Willoughby studies marine gas hydrates, which are TK. But as minouette she also makes and sells fantastic art on etsy, much of it inspired by science and scientists. The Madame Wu woodcut was the cover for the September issue of Physics World!

h/t to The Finch and Pea

http://thefinchandpea.com/2012/10/16/the-art-of-science-madame-wu-and-the-violation-of-parity/#more-7145