Mujeres En La Ciencia

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Research Directorate L - Science, economy and society Unit L5 - Communication Contact: Tonia Jimenez Nevado European Commission Office SDME 02/81 B-1049 Brussels Tel. (32-2) 29-92192 Fax (32-2) 29-58220 E-mail: maria-antonia.jimenez-nevado@ec.europa.eu

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

2009Directorate-General for Research

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A great deal of additional information on the European Union is available on the Internet. It can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu). Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2009 ISBN 978-92-79-11486-1 doi 10.2777/41595 ©European Communities, 2009 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Belgium

Foreword
For much of human history, women were officially excluded from the scientific realm. However, in spite of their invisibility in the history narrative, this did not mean that science was exclusively a man’s world. Many women, throughout the centuries, have managed to overcometheir marginalisation and excel in their chosen field, making vital contributions to the sum of human knowledge. With this book we would like to celebrate European women scientists throughout the ages. The book tells the compelling stories of some of the heroines of European science – some sung but many unsung – and, through their narratives, it enriches and completes the history of scientificknowledge by highlighting its female face. We would also like to celebrate female, or to be more general – human – creativity. 2009 has been declared the ‘European Year of Creativity and Innovation’. A creative person does things that have never been done before. Discovering new knowledge in science and medicine, inventing new technology or analysing a situation in a new way (for example, in law,philosophy, history), this is all creative – and innovative. And it is also a vital part of science. With this inspiring book, we also wish to celebrate the 10th anniversary of European activities concerning women in science. The first Commission Communication on this issue was published in 1999, where a promise was made to improve the situation for women in this "man‘s world" of science. In the past tenyears, progress has been made. So let us keep up the good work done so far while continuing to push towards the full inclusion of women in scientific life. Women deserve it – and science will benefit from it.

Janez Potočnik

Contents
FOREWORD INTRODUCTION PORTRAITS Hypatia of Alexandria Hildegard von Bingen
(370-415) (1098-1179)

3 7 9
The last classical philosopher A medieval visionaryThe scientific revolutionary The prodigy of Venice

10 14 18 22 26 30 34 38 42 46 50 54 58 62 66 70 74 78

Lady Margaret Cavendish Maria Sibylla Merian Émilie du Châtelet

(1623-1673)

Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia
(1647-1717)

(1646-1684)

Scientific butterfly
(1670-1720)

Maria Margarethe Winkelmann-Kirch
(1706-1749)

The eclipse of a star astronomer

Illuminator of the...