We've all heard of famous inventors such as Galileo (the telescope), Karl Benz (the automobile), Alexander Graham Bell (the phone) and Benjamin Franklin (bifocal glasses), but do you also know who Grace Hopper and Stephanie Kwolek were?
One of these women invented the first programming language compiler, which has certainly changed the world. The other invented Kevlar: a material five times stronger than steel, which is currently used all over the world to protect people from bullets! These have been very important inventions, but history has taught us that women's achievements are often overlooked and receive insufficient praise.
We have decided to rectify that by considering some of the most important discoveries and inventions made by women in the last 100 years:
Marie Curie, a Polish / French physicist, was only 44 years old when she developed the theory of radioactivity (a term she said herself coined; techniques for isolating radioactive isotopes, and the discovery of two elements, polonium and radium (1898). She also won TWO Nobel Prizes for her contribution to science! Not only was she the first person in history to win two Nobel Prizes, she is also the only one in history to win in two different categories!
In 1843, Nancy from Philadelphia became one of the most important women, no, people in history by getting a patent on a design for a manual ice maker, which we use to this day! We cannot say anything other than: Thank you Nancy. From the bottom of our heart.
This Hungarian scientist is famous for creating the first thermoelectric power generator in 1947, for designing the first solar heating system for the Dover Sun House in Dover, Massachusetts, and for inventing the first thermoelectric refrigerator in 1953 by utilizing the principles of thermoelectricity ... That is girl power again!
In 1991 this huge and complex invention was made in the United States. The ability to isolate stem cells has been crucial for medical advances in cancer. It is hoped that this invention will one day lead to a cure for these and many other diseases.
In 1949, Grace Hopper and Howard Aiken, born in the United States, designed Harvard's first Mark I computer, a five-ton, space-filling machine. Hopper invented a compiler that translated written language into computer code, and coined the words "bug" and "debugging" when she removed moths from the device (who would have thought that !?). Now, close your eyes for a moment and try to imagine what the world would look like without the invention of programming. Almost prehistoric, right?
Speaking of the time before computers, no childhood memories would be complete without being able to think back to the battle you had with your brother because he stole from the bank, or the frustration because you didn't end up at START….
In 1904, Magic received the original patent for the game "The Landlord Game". It was a criticism of the injustices that resulted from unrestrained capitalism. Ironically, however, the game was stolen by one Charles Darrow who sold it to the Parker Brothers in 1935. The company managed to track down Elizabeth Magie, but they only offered her $ 500 for her invention!
Although the invention of the DNA double helix is often attributed to Watson and Crick, who won the Nobel Prize for Physiology in 1962, they should not have claimed this invention. They had a theory about the structure of DNA, but it was Rosalind Franklin whose work confirmed this theory.
Rosalind Franklin, a British physiologist, was the first person to make a photographic image of DNA in 1952 with a technique she had sharpened: observing molecules through X-Ray diffraction (no ... we have no idea what that means, do not worry).
Why is she never recognized for this?! It is said that, without her permission, a male colleague of hers, Wilkins, had shown her photo to her competitors Watson and Crick, and the rest is, as they say in English, his-story.
In 1882, Maria Beasley from the United States decided that people should no longer die at sea. Very good of course. People had been navigating the seas for centuries, but until then they had no effective product that could save them in an emergency. Thanks to Maria, thousands of lives have already been saved!
Although this invention of American chemist Stephanie Kwolek in 1965 was an accident, it is very popular! This material, which is five times stronger than steel, is used in bicycle tires, sailboats, bulletproof vests, frying pans, musical instruments and the construction of buildings, thanks to the tensile strength-to-weight ratio (yes, complicated all). There is almost nothing that Kevlar is not used for!
The theoretical physicist was one of the first dark women to receive a Ph.D. earned at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1973. While working at the Bell Laboratory, she did groundbreaking scientific research into sub-atomic particles. This enabled others to invent the portable fax, touch telephone, solar cells, fiber optic cables and the technology behind call waiting and caller ID utilities that are very important for every business. Imagine what you would have missed without this wonderful woman!
Women can achieve fantastic things when they get the opportunity to use their full potential! Help us to ensure that every girl gets the chance to change the world by going to school
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