"Thank You, Women" We Say in Unison

Any excuse to praise and recognize women! Happy Women's History Month

I’m so fucking sick that we’re not only still fighting for equality - but that we’ve gotten to a point where the little progress we made, is being completely wiped away. with the rise of right-wing and fascist ideologies, not just in America but around the world, I fear the lasting consequences. not that I ever really need an excuse to highlight amazing women, it seems more important than ever to showcase the intelligence, creativity, ingenuity, and overall excellence of women. I wish it didn’t have to feel like proving a point, but it also just feels important to remind the world that men aren’t the default.

A very short list of accomplishments by women:

Flossie Wong-Staal was a Chinese-American virologist and molecular biologist. You should know her because she was the first scientist to clone HIV and identify its function, pivotal in providing HIV causes AIDS.

Gertrude Elion was a biochemist and pharmacologist, and notably a Nobel Prize-winner. You should know her for her foundational contributions to AZT, one of the first antiretroviral medications used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. She also developed the first immunosuppressive drug, azathioprine, which fights organ rejection in transplants, and the first successful antiviral drug, acyclovir which treats herpes.

Vera Rubin was a pioneering astronomer. You should know she discovered a major piece of evidence for the presence of dark matter from observations of galactic rotation curves. A life-long advocate for women in science too, she was known for her mentorship of rising female astronomers. Despite her accomplishments, it is now widely agreed that Rubin was snubbed for a Nobel Prize on the basis of being a woman.

Marie Curie was a Polish-French physicist and chemist, pioneered research on radioactivity. You should know she is the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person to win it twice, and the only person to win in two different scientific fields. Her first prize she won with her husband (also making them the first married couple to win together) for their theory of radioactivity - a term she coined. Her second prize was for the discovery of polonium and radium by isolating radioactive isotopes using techniques she invented.

Emilie du Chatelete was a French mathematician and physicist, known for Institutions de Physique (Foundations of Physics) which discusses the principles of knowledge, the existence of God, space, time, matter, and the forces of nature. She was outspoken in the vis viva debate, and her arguments were recorded in the Encyclopedie of Denis Diderot, the most famous text from the French Enlightenment. A true visionary, she and Voltaire (also a French Enlightenment writer and philosopher) were peers, collaborators, and lovers. Iconic.

Maria Goeppert Mayer was a German-American physicist and Nobel Prize winner, the second woman to win for Physics. You should know her for her theory of two-photon absorption by atoms, which is now named the Goeppert Mayer (GM) unit. She has an impressive career; published a groundbreaking paper on double beta decay, worked on the Manhattan Project, and developed a mathematical model for the structure of nuclear shells - winning her the Nobel Prize.

Lene Hau, a Danish physicist and is known for leading a Harvard team using a Bose-Einstein condensate to successfully slow down a beam of light to about 17 meters per second, in 2001 she was able to stop a beam completely! She then also led her team to convert a pulse of light into a matter wave and back.

Inge Lehmann was a Danish seismologist and geophysicist. You should know her for discovering and proving Earth’s solid inner core through inconsistencies in seismic wave speed from earthquakes - known as the Lehmann discontinuity. She was also an advocate for women in seismology research, inspired by her aunt Hanna Adler who was resolute in her advocation for gender equality. A fun fact, she will be honored on a 2028 Danish krone banknote!

Again, to be perfectly clear, this is a VERY short list. Women have always played a pivotal role in advancing society and culture in spite of: discoveries and inventions being stolen by men, artwork and writings being stolen by husbands or jealous peers, being literally burned at the stake for being a “witch”, being generally disregarded as inferior. The most creative and aspirational people in my life and in the world, are women. Women are doing it all.

SPOTLIGHT:

Mel (@mel.on.medicine on TikTok) she is a current med student and breaks down news, legislation, and terms about health care - specifically reproductive rights in a way that’s accessible.

Ella (@ellabaudinet on TT) an artist I stumbled across and was truly blown away. Stunning. Ethereal. Her colors are rich and smooth, water-like.

Sola is an incredible musician whose pieces combine classical, jazz, and electronica creating a unique sound and genre of her own.

Daria Rose (@dariarosereal on TT) is a Big Law associate in NYC who discusses and breaks down politics and legal news.

These are just a few people I’ve found inspiring lately.

Ren