How women aided the war effort

During World War II, the U.S. government raced to develop nuclear weapons. This massive endeavor, called the Manhattan Project, employed over 130,000 people nationwide.

The U.S. also funded projects to build computers that could handle complex calculations for weapons systems.

Women were essential to these projects, though most were restricted to lower-level jobs. Many women with science and math training worked as “calculators,” equipment operators, or lab assistants. Only a few female scientists were promoted to senior positions.
 

1912-1997
Particle and Experimental Physicist

Encouraged by her parents, Chien-Shiung Wu found her passion for science as a child in the newly formed Republic of China. When her focus turned to physics, she immigrated to the U.S. for her graduate studies.

She was a brilliant experimental physicist and a leading expert in beta decay, or what happens when one type of atom changes to another and releases an electron. Wu was the first to prove a disputed theory by Enrico Fermi on the process of beta decay. She also designed the experiment to prove that parity, or a type of symmetry, is not preserved in beta decay, called “Wu’s Experiment”. Throughout her career, she remained an active and highly honored scientist. In 1976, she received the President’s National Medal of Science for her achievements.

When you close your eyes and think of a scientist, odds are the imaginary scientist in your mind is wearing a lab coat and looking through a microscope. Some scientists definitely wear those and do that! But, science comes in many forms.

Materials left behind by scientists show us this variety. Jeannine Duane used some of these objects to teach about space flight. Bea Mintz used some of these objects to make progress in cancer research. Though very different, both scientists were dedicated to discovering and sharing knowledge.

Revisit some of the other scientists in the exhibition. What special clothes or tools do you notice?

— Katherine Johnson, NASA Mathematician

In the sciences, women have faced barriers for centuries. Women of color have faced and continue to face even greater barriers. Through their PERSISTENCE they have and continue to change science for the better.

Join us in learning about scientists of color and their many contributions through this sampling of resources and consider discovering more on your own. While today’s science is more accessible and diverse than ever, there is still work to be done to open up doors and create opportunities for any person PURSUING science.

Here are just a few of the books we found:

Children's Books:

Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts, 2016
Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer by Traci Sorrell and Natasha Donovan, 2021
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly and Laura Freeman, 2018
Maryam’s Magic: The Story of Mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani by Andrea Reid and Aaliya Jaleel, 2021
Queen of Physics: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom by Teresa Robeson and Rebecca Huang, 2019

Middle Grades:

Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments from My Life by Mae Carol Jamison (engineer, astronaut), 2022
My Remarkable Journey: A Memoir by Katherine Johnson (mathematician), 2022

Adult books:

All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (marine biologist) and Katharine K. Wilkinson, 2021
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer (plant ecologist), 2015
The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein (physicist, cosmologist), 2022
 

In tandem with the 2023 exhibition, the APS created a blog to highlight the work of living APS Members and grant and fellowship recipients. Each month, four scientists were featured.