Happy Ada Lovelace Day
Hi friends of women in science,
Today we can celebrate Ada Lovelace, to quote Sheryl Sandberg's Facebook posting on the subject, "to champion the achievements of women in science, tech, engineering, and math - the day is named for the woman considered to be the world's first computer programmer. Congratulating all of the amazing women in technology on this day!"
Last year, I asked us to reflect on women we encountered as mentors earlier in our careers, women in science and math and engineering who may have taught us in high school, given talks that excited us about science-related ideas, or been family friends and role models. Do share stories of these women in the comments if you like; it's a way to make their contributions more visible. Lovelace was wonderful in inventing computer programming, but lots of other hands work on bringing more women to the STEM fields. Who were some of yours?
cheers,
Laura
Hi Laura,
I did have a great high school teacher of biology, Mrs. Fasberg, and she really inspired me. I believe she was actually French, and some of the boys were more inspired by her low-cut blouses, perhaps, but I loved the way she thought. She said encouraging things to me often, as well, and recommended me to a junior research program that I enjoyed. Thanks, Mrs. Fasberg!
Kathy
Hi Laura,
I heard a great talk by Lynn Margulis, who recently passed away, when I was just starting graduate school. Among other role models, she became an important one for me.
SSW
This time, I'll go first! My high school science teachers, Jean Campbell in chemistry and Edna Fletcher in biology, were great role models. They encouraged my creativity and interest in experiments even though they couldn't really do research in their own settings. Salut!
Laura
