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Scientific Discoveries by Women Wrongly Credited to Men
Scientific Discoveries by Women Wrongly Credited to Men
Sanjana Singh, Y11B
Scientific Discoveries by Women Wrongly Credited to Men
It is the year 2025, and yet only five women have won a Nobel Prize in physics, only eight women have won a Nobel Prize in chemistry and only thirteen women have won a Nobel Prize in medicine. This is a reflection of the lack of female representation in the field of STEM, known as ‘The Matilda Effect’.
The Matilda Effect is a term that was created by Margaret Rossiter, an American historian, and named after Matilda Josyln Gage, an American writer and activist, who worked to advocate for womens and Native American rights. The term is an homage to Gage, who tirelessly advocated for oppressed groups. The Matilda Effect refers to the absence of acknowledgment for the achievements of women scientists, as well as the attribution of their discoveries to men. As said by Rosssiter, “It is important to note early that women’s historically subordinate ‘place,’ in science was not a coincidence and was not due to any lack of merit on their part. It was due to the camouflage intentionally placed over their presence in science.”
There are countless women in the STEM field who have contributed to groundbreaking discoveries, breakthroughs and inventions, but have had their names erased from history. Many have been replaced by undeserving men. In this article, I intend to shine a light on the women who have been overshadowed by men and give them the recognition that they deserve.
Alice Ball
Alice Ball was a chemist who developed a treatment for leprosy.
Ball was the first woman, as well as first African-American to graduate from the University of Hawaii with a master’s degree in chemistry. As she studied in Hawaii, she worked on chaulmoogra oil. At the time, this oil was the only source of treatment for leprosy, but it was difficult to administer effectively. Through her studies and work, Ball revolutionised the medicine by making the oil injectable - she did this by isolating ester ethyl compounds from the fatty acids. This in turn meant that the oil was soluble in water and could be dissolved in the bloodstream. Thus the injectable treatment was born. This method, called ‘The Ball Method’, was the only treatment that was successful and left no bitter taste.
Sadly, Ball died at just 24 years old and did not have the chance to publish her work. Her cause of death is unknown since her death certificate was altered to state it as tuberculosis; but it's suggested that it was caused by chlorine poisoning. Unfortunately, Arthur Dean, the president of the University of Hawaii, continued her work and published the findings, without giving credit to Ball, and renamed the method ‘The Dean Method’.
However, Dr Harry Hollmann (a doctor who reached out to Ball for her assistance in making the results of chaulmoogra oil more effective) spoke out and explained that it was in fact Ball who extracted the ester ethyl form of the oil.
Even though her career was tragically short, Ball’s discovery of a new treatment for leprosy helped thousands of people with the disease and saved an innumerable amount of lives.
Lise Meitner
Lise Meitner played a crucial role in the theory of nuclear fission.
Meitner began her studies of physics at a time when Austrian women were not permitted to attend university. However, she overcame these barriers and achieved a doctorate in physics in 1906, becoming the second woman to obtain a doctorate from the University of Vienna. After receiving her doctorate, Meitner attended Max Planck’s lectures in Berlin, became his assistant and worked with Otto Hahn, discovering isotopes.
In 1917, Meitner and Hahn discovered an isotope of protactinium. Meitner was awarded the Leibniz Medal and her own physics section at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Chemistry. In 1926, she began her research on nuclear fission, while being the first woman to teach as a full time physics professor at the University of Berlin.
With the rise of Hitler, Meitner decided to stay in Germany and continue her research despite her Jewish ancestry. However, as the Nazi regime began to take control she was snuck across the Dutch border in 1938. Despite this, she continued to work with Hahn through correspondence in mail. Hahn isolated the evidence for nuclear fission, but Meitner (as well as her nephew, Otto Frisch) were the first to understand how this process worked. Eventually, Hahn published their findings without mentioning Meitner and claimed sole credit for the discovery, fearing backlash for working with a Jewish woman, and received the Nobel Prize without crediting Meitner’s contributions.
World War II intensified the pursuit of exploiting nuclear fission for destructive purposes. During this time, Meitner was invited to work on The Manhattan Project (a research project with the goal of producing atomic bombs) but she rejected the offer, stating that “I will have nothing to do with a bomb”. Her decision was so impactful that her tombstone bears the words “A physicist who never lost her humanity”.
Esther Lederberg
Esther Lederberg was an American microbiologist and a pioneer of bacterial genetics.
Lederberg originally intended to pursue language and literature. However, she followed her interest in science and studied biochemistry against her teachers’ warnings that she would struggle to get a career. She earned a master’s degree in genetics in 1946 at Stanford University through a fellowship. However, the fellowship was not enough to support her, so she worked as a teaching assistant in a laboratory. During her times of severe financial struggle, she resorted to eating leftover frog legs from dissections, a testament of her dedication to her passion. She also researched the process of genetic mutation in the bacteria Esherichia coli during this time, and completed her doctorate in 1950. Lederberg married Joshua Lederberg shortly before she graduated, who is known for discovering ‘sexual processes’ in bacteria. However, their marriage resulted in J. Lederberg becoming famous for his ideas and E. Lederberg becoming overshadowed by her husband.
Her first scientific discovery was the lambda phage in 1950, which revolutionised the scientific world’s understanding of bacterial gene regulation and recombination, as well as genetics in general. Her experimentation with the lambda phage also resulted in other discoveries, such as the identification of the fertility factor that plays an important role in bacterial conjugation. In addition to this, Lederberg developed the replica plating method, a groundbreaking technique for screening thousands of bacterial colonies for diverse phenotypes.
However, Joshua Lederberg won the Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine for his discoveries of genetic transfer and recombination in bacteria, while Esther Lederberg’s work, that was as necessary as her husband’s, was not included.
Unfortunately, while the Nobel Prize led J. Lederberg to Chair of the Genetics Department at Stanford University, E. Lederberg was given a senior scientist position that eventually resulted in a research professorship without tenure.
Lederberg is one of countless women whose achievements were obscured by men. Her story reminds us of how women have been denied opportunities in science and could only have access to the field through a relationship with a man. Despite this, Lederberg’s passion for her interests never wavered.
In the past and present women have always had a love for science. Yet their discoveries and names have been crossed out and replaced by the ones of men in history books. These women remind us that their presence will always be needed and to keep persisting no matter what, because one day, someone may shine a light on them.
Sources:
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lists/nobel-prize-awarded-women/
https://www.lostwomenofscience.org/post/the-matilda-effect
https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/matilda-joslyn-gage
https://oumnh.ox.ac.uk/learn-alice-ball
https://www.uhfoundation.org/impact/students/woman-who-changed-world
https://ahf.nuclearmuseum.org/ahf/profile/lise-meitner/
https://www.whatisbiotechnology.org/index.php/people/summary/Lederberg_Esther
https://asm.org/articles/2023/october/esther-lederberg-microbial-genetics
Mathematical Illusions
Mathematical Illusions
Walter Oh, Y11A
Mathematical Illusions
Would you believe me if I told you that illusions could be created within mathematics? Today, I will explore three of the most famous illusions and paradoxes in mathematics.
Paradox Number 1: Look at the figure on the right side. We can see that 4 shapes can be used to create the area of a triangle, and also the area of the triangle and another square. But how is this possible? Area is finite and can’t increase, can’t it? Where did the missing square come from?
An easy way to find a flaw would be to find the gradient of the triangles (the big overall one, the orange one, and the blue one). Gradient means the steepness, or how fast the height changes depending on the change in length. The big triangle has a height of 5 and a length of 13. So, the gradient would be 5/13 which is around 0.385. The blue triangle has a height of 3 and a length of 8. So the gradient is 3/8, which is 0.375 exactly. The orange triangle has a height of 2 and a length of 5, and the gradient is 2/5, which is 0.4 exactly. Since the slope is different for these two triangles, the longest line in the big triangle is not a straight line, which means that it is just an illusion: the big “triangle” is actually not a triangle! It is just that the gradients are so close to each other that it looks like a triangle.
Paradox Number 2: Imagine a fast runner racing a tortoise. Even if the tortoise is given a head start, you would be able to catch up to it, right? Well, Zenos, an ancient Greek philosopher, said no. When you have run and catched up to where the tortoise was, the tortoise will have moved by a small amount. If you try to move to where the tortoise is “now”, then the tortoise will have moved again. This process can be repeated infinitely many times, so an infinite amount of distance needs to be travelled to catch the tortoise - so one can ever catch up to the tortoise! I will leave this question for people to ponder about.
Paradox Number 3: Finally, we have a logical paradox. Let’s imagine there was a town where every person is male and there was only one barber. We also assume that every male grows facial hair and will either shave it themselves or will ask the barber to shave it for him. Imagine now the barber sets a rule: “I shave the people who don't shave themselves, and only such people.” The question arises: who shaves the barber? If he shaves himself, he is breaking his own rule: as he only shaves the people that don’t shave themselves. But if he doesn’t shave himself, then he must shave himself. This shows that some questions don't have a straightforward answer. Another example of such a question is shown if someone says: “I am lying.” If they are lying, then they must be saying the truth, while if they are saying the truth, then they must be lying. This can be regarded as a problem caused by using a statement to create a question, also known as self-reference to create a paradox.
I hope you enjoyed the paradoxes and illusions that I introduced in this article and if you have any questions or suggestions, then please don’t hesitate to contact me at walter30661@g.lfis.edu.hk.
Optical Illusions
Optical Illusions
Jimin Kim, Y11B
Optical Illusions and their Classifications
Introduction:
Optical illusions, also known as visual illusions, occur when your eyes are presented with colours, patterns, lights, borders, or areas of contrast that mislead the brain. In these cases, what you see and what your brain perceives are different. Then, the brain constructs a representation of the world for itself, using shortcuts, assumptions, and prior experiences. When these processes lead to a mismatch between what’s physically present and what we perceive, we experience an optical illusion.
How does it work?
There are several steps to how optical illusions work, from light to perception. Firstly, light reflecting off an object enters the eye and passes through the cornea, (the clear outer layer), then the pupil, and finally, the lens, which focuses the light. The lens projects the image onto the retina, a light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye. The retina translates this stimulus into electrical impulses that move along neural pathways through the thalamus, a structure in the middle of the brain responsible for relaying sensory impulses. It also relays the stimulus to the brain’s visual cortex, which is located at the back of the head.
In the retina, the information is processed in its multiple layers of neurons, including bipolar cells, amacrine cells, and ganglion cells. They layer the different elements present in the information to build a 3D image; taking into account things such as colour opponency, edge detection, and contrast enhancement. This is transmitted through optic nerve to the brain, specifically the visual cortex in the occipital lobe. The brain processes go awry, causing us to recognize something that doesn’t accurately reflect physical reality.
Gestalt Principles:
The key principles of optical illusions include the Gestalt Principles, where your brain fills in the gaps to create a different perception when looking at all the individual elements assembled together rather than isolated. The meaning of the part/element is not fixed but changes depending on the whole they are assembled into. Therefore, the Gestalt principle emphasizes the integration of the separate parts to create one whole image in a pattern. Illusions exploit these principles to create perceptions that differ from the individual elements.
(eg. when assembled together, it looks as if the rings are overlapping each other)
Categories of Optical Illusions:
Firstly, literal optical illusions, these illusions arise directly from the properties of light itself, rather than from cognitive processes. For example, mirages, when bending of light rays in the atmosphere due to temperature gradients occur.
Secondly, physiological illusions result from the overstimulation of specific sensory pathways in the brain. They are usually short-lived and affect perception after exposure to a particular stimulus.
Lastly, cognitive illusions are the result of the brain’s interpretation of sensory information based on prior knowledge, assumptions and context. They involve higher-level cognitive processes and are often the most complicated. For example, the Ponzo illusion (Linear Perspective Illusion), when two identical lines placed between converging lines appear to be different lengths. Basically, the brain uses linear perspective to judge distance. The converging lines suggest that the upper line is further away, so the brain compensates by perceiving it as longer.
Sources: https://www.optics4kids.org/optical-illusions
https://dmei.org/blog/how-does-an-optical-illusion-work/
https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2016/march/optical-illusions.html
https://www.toptal.com/designers/ui/gestalt-principles-of-design
https://www.cleareyes.com/eye-care-blog/201610/types-optical-illusions
Self Interview
Self Interview
Walter Oh, Y11A
Self Interview
Q: Would you mind briefly introducing yourself?
A: Hello. My name is Walter Oh Wonseok. I am South Korean, and I am a Year 11 international stream student in FIS. I used to go to a local school when I was younger. Then, I moved to Discovery College, where I started to learn about IB. Now I am here in French International School, preparing to do IGCSE and IB. I take additional maths, Computer Science, Economics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology for IGCSE, besides the required subjects of international mathematics, English and French (as a foreign language). I also take Chinese (as a foreign language) as an extra IGCSE subject.
Q: Is it correct to say that you are talented in mathematics?
A: People find me to have good mathematical skills, but by no means am I gifted in this field. As one says, practice makes perfect, and my parents helped me out a lot with practicing mathematics when I was younger. But, for sure, I am significantly more confident in mathematics than most of the other students in this school.
Q: Speaking of your parents, if you had a choice to have different parents, would you do so?
A: Even though from time to time my parents would lose their temper, I do not mind as I understand that my parents are not there to scold me, but to support and encourage me, and teach me what I am doing wrong. They are the ones that allowed me to grow and develop into who I am now, and even if I had a choice to have different parents, I wouldn’t change them as they are the ones who made me the person I am today.
Q: What, in your opinion, made you differently skilled in mathematics than other students?
A: I have a mother who is a mathematics teacher, which does mean that I can interact with mathematical questions a lot more than most students and have had a lot of opportunities for it. However, that is not the main reason. The most important reason is that I practice a few questions every day. Unlike what most people think, I don’t spend 5 hours a day doing math but in my opinion, frequent and consistent practice is the key for good achievements. This is true not only for mathematics but also for other subjects.
Q: You mentioned that you have gone to many different math competitions. Which one(s) do you find the most memorable?
A: To be honest, most individual ones seem a bit boring now from time to time. What makes me find it more interesting is the team rounds. For example, some may know that some of my classmates and I, along with some year 12 students, have gone to the Berkeley Math Tournament, where there was one individual round and two team rounds. There was also another inter-esf competition when I was in Discovery College. It was an online competition in groups of 2. This person and I were able to get second place in this competition. Another competition that I enjoyed was the Junior World Math Competition, where I got 4th overall in Hong Kong and went to Melbourne last year, and got 1st overall this year in Hong Kong. I believe the most important thing about competitions is to have fun, regardless of your results.
Q: Do you think there is anything that you are bad at or could improve on in the future?
A: I am more of a mathematical person so I am quite weak in languages, especially because all of the languages I learn in school are not my first language. Of course, everyone has something they are weak in!
Q: What would be your advice to people who want to improve their grades in general?
A: It generally depends on the subject but the best advice I could give is to focus on the topics that you find difficult and do the questions from those topics. This will help to build your knowledge on the topics that you are weak at, which you definitely need to get a good grade (that is why english is hard for me: there is not really a specific topic).
Q: If people are looking for help with maths, are you willing to reach out?
A: Of course! If anyone, male or female, old or young, needs my help with any math questions or other topics, I am willing to help. My email address is walter30661@g.lfis.edu.hk. I usually check email a few times a day so I should be able to help out.
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