San Antonio College Library

In a world dominated by men, women have struggled in obscurity to make their mark in science. In fields ranging from aeronautics to zoology, the pioneering discoveries of these women are a testament to their ability to overcome cultural prejudices against education and career advancement for women. International women in science: a bibliographical dictionary to 1950 presents the enormous contributions of women outside North America in fields ranging...

"Was Marie Curie the only woman in science?" This question, asked by a college student trying to write an essay on women in science, planted a seed that grew over a decade of research into this informative and accessible biographical dictionary and bibliography.

At the heart of this biographical dictionary are profiles of 186 women whose work is representative of the participation of women in the science of their time and culture. Despite the increasing

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Scientists offer personal accounts of the challenges, struggles, successes, U-turns, and satisfactions encountered in their careers in industry, academia, and government.

In 2013, the New York Times published an obituary for Yvonne Brill. It began: "She made a mean beef stroganoff, followed her husband from job to job, and took eight years off from work to raise three children." It wasn't until the second paragraph that readers discovered why the Times had devoted several hundred words to her life: Brill was a brilliant rocket scientist who invented a propulsion system to keep communications satellites in orbit, and...

"The surprising, often fiercely feminist, always fascinating, yet barely known, history of home economics. The term 'home economics' may conjure traumatic memories of lopsided hand-sewn pillows or sunken cakes. But obscured by common conception is the story of the revolutionary science of better living. The field exploded opportunities for women in the twentieth century by reducing domestic work and providing jobs as professors, engineers, chemists,...

This biographical dictionary surveys more than 300 women who have made significant contributions to major fields of scientific endeavor since 1950. Each concise A-to-Z biography includes information on the woman's background, employment history, honors, and publications and places her achievements in the appropriate scientific and social contexts. All entries are indexed by name, profession, and subject, making this an outstanding reference for anyone...

"In 2015, at the age of ninety-seven, Katherine Johnson became a global celebrity for her pioneering work as a mathematician on NASA's first flights into space. In this memoir, she shares her personal journey from child prodigy in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia to NASA human computer. Centered around the basic tenets of her life - no one is better than you, education is paramount, and asking questions can break barriers - this heartfelt...

The Madame Curie Complex gives fresh insight into the barriers and successes for women in science, and sheds light on the way our cultural ideas of gender have shaped the profession.