Early interests in STEM mature into passions and professional careers for many. In particular, despite a history of underrepresentation, women have seen gradual advancements in their involvement in STEM fields, going from making up just 8% of STEM workers in the U.S. in 1970 to 27% in 2019, the U.S. Census Bureau reports.
However, such numbers conceal what was once a less pleasant reality surrounding the recognition of women in STEM, which can be illustrated through the narratives of two female pioneers in the field of physics: Lise Meitner, the “Mother of the Atomic Bomb,” and Chinese American physicist Chien-Shiung Wu.
Widely regarded as the most prestigious award for intellectual achievement in the world, the Nobel Prize is awarded annually in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace to those who, in the words of founder Alfred Nobel, “have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.”
It has been a historical recurrence throughout the sciences for men to take credit for discoveries made with or by their female counterparts, and the Nobel Prize is no exception.
Meitner, the first woman to become a German physics professor, is in fact the unsung hero of the research that went into the discovery of nuclear fission — a process that would eventually aid in the creation of the atomic bomb.
On a path to upend the principles of nuclear physics and chemistry and, indirectly, that of history, Meitner conducted 30 years of research with chemist Otto Hahn on radioactive substances. However, Hahn would go on to exclusively receive the 1944 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his and Meitner’s shared work towards the proof of nuclear fission.
Why is it that there exists a habit to gloss over or leave out the contributions of women who have worked alongside men in their scientific findings? Surely, in the name of objectivity and its impartial nature, science transcends these biases?
History yet again points to a different answer. Wu, a revolutionary particle and experimental physicist, found herself in a similar situation as Meitner when she was overlooked for the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics.
In her landmark 1956 experiment following her work on the Manhattan Project, Wu disproved the Parity Law, a widely accepted law of physics at the time. Though the American Association of Women press identified her experiment as the “solution to the number-one riddle of atomic and nuclear physics,” the Nobel Prize was solely bestowed upon Wu’s coworkers, Tsung-Dao Lee and Chen Ning Yang, who were the ones to initially propose the theory that physics violated parity, but had no definite data to support it until Wu’s experimentation.
Wu’s first recognition for her reversal of the Parity Law wouldn’t come until more than two decades later, with the 1978 Wolf Prize in Physics.
Lack of recognition is compounded by pervasive stereotypes regarding women’s ability to succeed in STEM and a general absence of female role models. This cycle feeds into insecurities generated by such stereotypes and can drive some women away from careers in the sciences, indicating the need for a more inclusive workplace culture.
Yet a striking parallel exists between the experiences of Lise Meitner and Chien-Shiung Wu. Regardless of preexisting gender barriers, neither woman lost sight of the good that could come of their scientific pursuits.
“There is only one thing worse than coming home from the lab to a sink full of dirty dishes, and that is not going to the lab at all,” Wu once said.
Today, in an echo of Wu’s sentiments, women have made leaps and bounds in the avenues of STEM, as they remain committed to their pursuit of scientific research.
What is exciting is that 2023 marks a record-breaking high for women in the Nobel Prize, as names such as L’Huiller, Goldin and Kariko have risen to prominence — they constitute the three women laureates who won the Nobel Prize in the fields of physics, economics and physiology or medicine, respectively, signaling a hopeful rise in the recognition of the role of women in STEM.
Accordingly, an increase in women nominees and laureates in recent years are in part due to changes in the nomination process conducted by the award-granting Nobel committees, with roughly double the percentage of women appearing in the nominee pool from 2015 to 2021, as reported by Science Journal.
However, further changes still need to be made if we wish to see women being fully represented among Nobel laureates throughout STEM disciplines. Even with the recent increases in female scientists being recognized on the center stage, women only account for 3.9% of the 739 Nobel laureates in science.
Possible steps to strengthen representation include addressing the makeup of the selection committees themselves or implementing more inclusive educational policies. All in all, as we attempt to grapple with such concerns, we should note both the award-winning female role models of the past and the pioneering women of the future, who may just be tinkering in your local laboratory, for bringing us a step closer to bridging the gender gap in STEM.
