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July 31, 2004
Dignifying Science & Rosalind Franklin
BoingBoing posted two great entries about women in science today that i thought others would enjoy:
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Women scientists' unsung stories in comic-book form
"Rosalind Franklin's story is one of many great and unsung women scientists' stories recounted in the brilliant, Eisner-nominated comic book Dignifying Science, which features the work of Jen Sorensen, Anne Timmons, Ramona Fradon, Marie Severin and others, and the stories of scientists like Marie Curie, Emmy Noether, Lise Meitner, Barbara McClintock, Birute Galdikas, and Hedy Lamarr."
You can read the first three pages.
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Rosalind Franklin: Crick and Watson's uncredited collaborator
Many of you wrote in response to the Crick obit from earlier today to remind us of the unsung and uncredited hero of DNA, Rosalind Franklin. Here's what Allison says about her:
It is past due that Dr. Rosalind Franklin received credit for actually being the scientist who demonstrated the helical nature of DNA. Her crystallography was crucial to the subsequent elucidation of DNA structure and replication. Her research was used without her knowledge or permission.
Posted by zephoria at 06:42 AM in History | Permalink
Comments
Wanna see the original data? Structure B, photo 51.
A larger version is here, in case, like me, you want to make it into a t-shirt one day.
Posted by: sennoma at Aug 4, 2004 3:26:07 AM
Its not only women that get their research stolen- think of the number of guys that had their research stolen. Heck even albert einestien said he didnt want anyone touching his corpse, and what did they do? they cut out his brain to study it coz he was so smart....hmm, having your research stolen, or your brain stolen, which is more serious? lol
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Posted by: Itil at Aug 4, 2004 6:46:12 AM
As someone who studied physics, I can tell you that the names Lise Meitner and Emmy Noether are very well-known. Noether's theorem is one of the most beautiful discoveries in modern physics, revealing conservation laws to be associated with symmetry: The reason energy is conserved is tied in with the symmetry of time, that the universe is essentially the same from moment to moment.
Curie, of course, was awarded the Nobel prize. I am glad Franklin is getting her recognition but, of course, the ultimate paradox is that the really deserving and unsung heroes are, well, still unknown and unsung.
Posted by: ricardo at Aug 7, 2004 5:04:11 PM
Franklin would undoubtedly have shared the Nobel Prize with Crick and Watson, had she not died tragically young. The Nobel rules insist that the recipients of the Prize are still living - as a consequence, the Prize is fortunately not awarded to a succession of dead white European men. Occasionally it is not awarded to a dead white European woman. Get used to it.
Posted by: Anonymous Coward at Sep 21, 2004 2:53:52 PM
