Core
Hedy Lamarr
1914-2000, Austria/USA2 POINTS
– Co-invented spread spectrum and frequency hopping technology, which are now used in WiFi, GPS, and more.
– Was a glamorous Hollywood film star; having starred in 30 films.
Maria Sibylla Merian
1647-1717, Germany2 POINTS
– First to observe and document the metamorphosis of a butterfly.
– One of the most significant contributors to entomology.
– Was an accomplished botanical artist.
Alice Ball
1892-1916, USA3 POINTS
– First woman and African-American Masters graduate from the University of Hawaii.
– Developed a leprosy treatment that was still in use until the 1940s.
– However, after her death, the president of the university took credit for her treatment.
Chien-Shiung Wu
1912-1997, China/USA4 POINTS
– The “Wu experiment” disproved conservation of parity: thought to be a law of nature.
– Worked on the Manhattan Project, and made significant contributions to radioactivity research.
– Was a fierce advocate of social justice in her later years.
MODIFIER
.Women are half of the population but hold only about a quarter of the science and engineering jobs in the US. As well, despite women receiving roughly half of the PhDs, they only hold less than a quarter of professorships.