By: Noelle Di Perna 

Photo by Moritz Kindler, CC BY 1.0 on UnSplash

For almost all the theories that were pioneered by extraordinary men whose names will live on in textbooks for years to come, there is a woman, who realised that no matter how hard she works, the patriarchy works harder. There are always two sides to every story; and the stories we know best about science and discovery are inevitably influenced by men. From the discovery of DNA and nuclear fission to the first space launch, women make the world go around. 

Rosalind Franklin was a British scientist who studied physics and chemistry at Cambridge University (“Rosalind Franklin: A Crucial Contribution”). Despite working on various different scientific endeavours such as the porosity of coal for her PhD thesis, she dedicated her life to X-Ray crystallography. This technology was the very tool that allowed Franklin to study and discover the shape of DNA as a helix. However, before Franklin could publish her findings, her former lab partners James Watson and Francis Crick stole her data and released it as their own (“Rosalind Franklin: A Crucial Contribution”). Although Watson and Crick did partake in sections of this research, the data was primarily Franklin’s. For years nobody knew of Franklin’s role in this major discovery that changed the face of medicine. 

Lise Meitner was an Austrian physicist who studied at the University of Vienna (“Lise Meitner (1878 – 1968)”). After obtaining her education, she worked closely with chemist Otto Hahn to study radioactivity. In 1918 the duo discovered and named the element protactinium (“Lise Meitner (1878 – 1968)”). Shortly after, in 1923, Lise discovered the Auger effect which was named after a French scientist who discovered the theory two years after her (“Lise Meitner (1878 – 1968)”). She continued to work closely with Otto Hahn as they discovered the process best known as nuclear fission. Sadly, in 1944 only Otto was acknowledged and awarded a Nobel Prize for this discovery, while Lise was entirely ignored (“Lise Meitner (1878 – 1968)”). However, as more individuals became aware of the blatant discrimination Lise faced throughout her career, her colossal contributions to physics grew in popularity. 

Katherine Johnson was an American mathematician who studied mathematics and French at West Virginia State University (“Katherine Johnson”). In 1952, she was hired by NASA, which was previously known as NACA, to work as a calculation checker (“Katherine Johnson”) . However her intelligence, incredible talents, and drive for excellence allowed her into new spaces as a woman of colour. Johnson provided calculations for John Glenn’s 1962 orbit, the iconic Apollo 11 trip, and helped Apollo 13 make a safe return when the mission went south (“Katherine Johnson” ). Despite her success, she faced many challenges and threats to her intellect simply because of her identity.

In the face of our patriarchal society, the brave women of the past offer the women of today a stepping stool to reach the next level of greatness.

Works Cited 

“Katherine Johnson.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television,

https://www.biography.com/scientists/katherine-g-johnson.

“Lise Meitner (1878 – 1968).” Lise Meitner | Biographies, 

https://www.atomicarchive.com/resources/biographies/meitner.html.

“Rosalind Franklin: A Crucial Contribution.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, 

https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/rosalind-franklin-a-crucial-contribution-6538012/.