Valentina Tereshkova (1937) A factory worker and a sky-diving enthusiast, she was selected from among hundreds of applicants to train to become the first woman to fly in space. Selected in part for her PR-perfect humble background, which fit well into the Soviet propaganda machine, she achieved something incredible at a time when women were…

Mary Anning (1799 – 1847) Mary Anning knew more about dinosaurs and their fossils than the greatest male scholars of her day. She grew up in an age when most influential scientists at the time still didn’t accept dinosaur fossils for what they were – evidence of an extinct group of species that roamed the…

Emilie du Chatelet (1706 – 1749) Emilie du Chatelet was a great mathematician and physicist at a time when few women were encouraged to continue their education beyond learning how to read. Living in the first half of the 18th century, Emilie du Chatelet was lucky to be born into nobility to have a father that…

Welcome to The Science Women! The idea for this blog came about gradually. I’ve always been interested in science, and even have a graduate degree in science, but my work life took me in a different direction. My love for science, however, remains. History of science fascinates me. How do we formulate our ideas about…