Mathematics and Computing
Ada Lovelace
1815 – 1852
British
Discovery
Published an algorithm for Charles Babbage's proposed Analytical Engine
Permanent Collection
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Browse the museum's growing archive of pioneering women whose ideas reshaped science.
Chemistry
Alice Ball
1892 – 1916
American
Discovery
Developed an injectable treatment derived from chaulmoogra oil
Astronomy
Annie Jump Cannon
1863 – 1941
American
Discovery
Developed the stellar classification sequence used in modern astronomy
Genetics
Barbara McClintock
1902 – 1992
American
Discovery
Discovered mobile genetic elements through studies of maize
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Astrophysics
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin
1900 – 1979
British and American
Discovery
Showed that stars are composed mainly of hydrogen and helium
Experimental Physics
Chien-Shiung Wu
1912 – 1997
Chinese and American
Discovery
Experimental demonstration that parity is not conserved in weak interactions
Chemistry
Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin
1910 – 1994
British
Discovery
Determined structures of important biological molecules using X-ray crystallography
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Mathematics and Mathematical Physics
Emmy Noether
1882 – 1935
German
Discovery
Noether's theorem connected symmetries with conservation laws
Statistics and Public Health
Florence Nightingale
1820 – 1910
British
Discovery
Used statistical evidence and data visualization to reform hospital sanitation
Pharmacology and Biochemistry
Gertrude B. Elion
1918 – 1999
American
Discovery
Developed rational drug-design methods and treatments for leukemia and other diseases
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Computer Science
Grace Hopper
1906 – 1992
American
Discovery
Advanced compiler development and machine-independent programming languages
Invention and Communications
Hedy Lamarr
1914 – 2000
Austrian and American
Discovery
Co-invented a frequency-hopping communication system
Astronomy
Henrietta Swan Leavitt
1868 – 1921
American
Discovery
Discovered the period-luminosity relationship of Cepheid variable stars
Primatology and Anthropology
Jane Goodall
1934 – Present
British
Discovery
Long-term field observations transformed understanding of chimpanzee behavior
Mathematics and Aerospace
Katherine Johnson
1918 – 2020
American
Discovery
Calculated and verified flight trajectories for early United States space missions
Nuclear Physics
Lise Meitner
1878 – 1968
Austrian and Swedish
Discovery
Provided the physical explanation of nuclear fission with Otto Frisch
Theoretical Physics
Maria Goeppert Mayer
1906 – 1972
German and American
Discovery
Developed the nuclear shell model
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Physics and Chemistry
Marie Curie
1867 – 1934
Polish and French
Discovery
Pioneering research on radioactivity; discovery of polonium and radium
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Paleontology
Mary Anning
1799 – 1847
British
Discovery
Recovered and identified major marine reptile fossils from the Jurassic coast
Genetics and Cytology
Nettie Stevens
1861 – 1912
American
Discovery
Demonstrated the chromosomal basis of sex determination
Marine Biology and Environmental Science
Rachel Carson
1907 – 1964
American
Discovery
Documented ecological harms caused by indiscriminate pesticide use
Neuroscience
Rita Levi-Montalcini
1909 – 2012
Italian
Discovery
Co-discovered nerve growth factor
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Chemistry and Molecular Biology
Rosalind Franklin
1920 – 1958
British
Discovery
X-ray diffraction research crucial to understanding DNA structure
Pharmaceutical Chemistry
Tu Youyou
1930 – Present
Chinese
Discovery
Discovered artemisinin as an effective treatment for malaria
🏅 Nobel Laureate
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Astronomy
Vera Rubin
1928 – 2016
American
Discovery
Galaxy rotation studies supplied major evidence for dark matter
Museum Collection
Every profile is an exhibit.
Each scientist is presented as a museum exhibit that combines biography, discovery, historical context and lasting scientific impact.