10 Most Influential Women In The World

Augusta

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace ( 10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852)

She was an English mathematician and writer.

Most famous for: chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine.

Other achievements: considered by many to be the first computer programmer and her method has been called the world's first computer program, translated the Italian mathematician Luigi Menabrea's article on Babbage's newest proposed machine, the Analytical Engine. published paper with notes in the September 1843 edition of Taylor's Scientific Memoirs under the initialism AAL, Translated various papers and notes.

Education: Homeschooled (in science, maths, music, french and others)

Grace

Grace Brewster Murray Hopper (Murray December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992)

She was an American computer scientist and United States Navy rear admiral.

Education: 1) Preparatory schooling from Hartridge School in Plainfield, New Jersey. 2) Phi Beta Kappa from Vassar College with degrees in mathematics and physics, 1928 3) master's degree at Yale University in 1930. 4) PhD in math from Yale 5) Naval Reserve Midshipmen's School at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, 1944 (graduated as a first ranker in class)

Work Recognition: was assigned to the Bureau of Ships Computation Project at Harvard University, served on the Mark I computer programming staff, co-authored three papers on the Mark I, also known as the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator, from 1946- 49 continued to work on the MARK II and MARK III computers under Navy contracts. In 1949, Hopper joined the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation in Philadelphia as a senior mathematician. also served as UNIVAC director of Automatic Programming Development for Remington Rand. While working on the UNIVAC I and II, Hopper pioneered the idea of automatic programming and explored new ways to use the computer to code. In 1952 she developed the first compiler called A-0, which translated mathematical code into machine-readable code—an important step toward creating modern programming languages Hopper is widely recognized for her work designing COBOL, developing compilers for it, and encouraging its broad adoption.

Awards: In 1972 she received Yale’s Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal awarded to outstanding alumni. In 1973, she became the first woman and the first American to become a Distinguished Fellow of the British Computer Society. In 1991, President George Bush awarded Hopper the National Medal of Technology In 2016, Hopper posthumously received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honour, in recognition of her “lifelong leadership role in the field of computer science The Cray XE6 “Hopper” supercomputer at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center, or NERSC, was named after her.

Margaret

Margaret Heafield Hamilton

is an American computer scientist, systems engineer, and business owner. Education: graduated from Hancock High School in 1954. studied mathematics at the University of Michigan and Earlham College and earned a BA in mathematics with a minor in philosophy, graduated in 1958 Work Recognition: She was director of the Software Engineering Division of the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory, which developed onboard flight software for NASA's Apollo program. one of the programmers who wrote software for the prototype AN/FSQ-7 computer (the XD-1), used by the U.S. Air Force to search for possibly unfriendly aircraft. credited with coining the term ‘software engineering’ to describe her work at MIT’s Instrumentation Laboratory. founded two software companies—Higher Order Software in 1976 and Hamilton Technologies in 1986, both in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Awards: On November 22, 2016, Hamilton received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama In 2003, she was given the NASA Exceptional Space Act Award for scientific and technical contributions. The award included $37,200, the largest amount awarded to any individual in NASA's history. On April 28, 2017, she received the Computer History Museum Fellow Award, which honours exceptional men and women whose computing ideas have changed the world. In 2019, she was awarded the Intrepid Lifetime Achievement Award. Experience: From 1959 till today (roughly 62 years)

Julia

Julia Hunt Morgan (January 20, 1872 – February 2, 1957)

She was an American architect and engineer Education: graduated from Oakland High School in 1890. graduated in 1894 as the first woman with a B.S. degree in civil engineering at Berkeley with honours was the first woman to be admitted to the architecture program at l'École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts[1] in Paris. Work recognition: designed more than 700 buildings in California during a long and prolific career. the first woman architect licensed in California, 1904 best known for her work on Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. In April 1904, completed her first reinforced concrete structure, the 72-foot bell tower at Mills College, El Campanil, which survived the earthquake 2 years later. Five of the Southern California YWCA buildings were designed by Morgan Morgan made many architectural contributions to the women's college Mills College in the East Bay foothills of Oakland, California. In 1908, Julia Morgan designed the residence of James Henry Pierce at 1650 The Alameda in San Jose, which features rare California timber. Awards: Julia Morgan was the 2014 recipient (posthumous) of the AIA Gold Medal, the highest award of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). She is the first female architect to receive this honour the California Hall of Fame, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts. Active years: 1902- 1957 until her death (55 years)

Zaha

Zaha Mohammad Hadid(31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016)

was a British Iraqi architect, artist and designer. Education: In the 1960s Hadid attended boarding schools in England and Switzerland studied mathematics at the American University of Beirut before moving studied at the Architectural Association School of Architecture London, graduated in 1977 Work experience: Projects: Vitra Fire Station (1991–1993), Bergisel Ski Jump (1999–2002), Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati (1997–2000) Phaeno Science Center (2000–2005) Ordrupgaard Museum extension (2001–2005) BMW Administration Building (2001–2005) Guangzhou Opera House (2003–2010) London Olympics Aquatics Centre (2005–2011) Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul, Korea (2007–2013) amongst many…. Awards: Zaha Hadid was the first woman to take home architecture's highest honour, the Pritzker Architecture Prize (2004) 2013: Elected international member, American Philosophical Society[ 2003: Commander of the Civil Division of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to architecture. Active years: 1991- 2016 until her death (25 years)

Norma

Norma Merrick Sklarek (April 15, 1926 – February 6, 2012)

She was the first African American woman to pass her license exam to officially become an architect in both New York (1954) and California (1962).

Education: Barnard College, 1944–45 Columbia University, B.Arch., 1945–50

Work Experience: Projects: California Mart, Los Angeles, 1963, Gruen Associates Fox Plaza, San Francisco, 1966, Gruen Park Center Commercial Complex, San Jose, Calif., 1970–85, Gruen San Bernardino City Hall, San Bernardino, Calif., 1972–73, Gruen Commons-Courthouse Center, Columbus, Ind., 1973, Gruen California Mart, Los Angeles, 1963, Gruen Associates Fox Plaza, San Francisco, 1966, Gruen Park Center Commercial Complex, San Jose, Calif., 1970–85, Gruen San Bernardino City Hall, San Bernardino, Calif., 1972–73, Gruen Commons-Courthouse Center, Columbus, Ind., 1973, Gruen

Awards: Fellow, American Institute of Architects, 1980, first African American woman Association of Black Women Entrepreneurs’ Outstanding Business Role Model Award, 1987 Honoured by the National Organization of Minority Architects Honoured by the Black Women in Sisterhood for Action Honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, 1998 Norma Merrick Sklarek Architectural Scholarship Award established at Howard University Resolution from California State Legislature honouring Norma Merrick Sklarek, 2007 AIA Whitney M. Young Jr. Award, 2008 Active Period: From 1950 to 1992 retired (22 years of architecture involvement)

Lise

Lise Meitner

She was born on November 7, 1878, in Vienna, the third child in eight in her Jewish family. Most famous for: Lise Meitner was a pioneering physicist who studied radioactivity and nuclear physics. She was part of a team that discovered nuclear fission — a term she coined — but she was overlooked in 1945 when her colleague Otto Hahn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. She has been called the "mother of the atomic bomb," even though she did not directly have anything to do with its development. Element No. 109, meitnerium, was named in her honor. Other achievements: In 1923, Meitner discovered the radiationless transition. Unfortunately, she didn't receive much credit for the finding. It is called the Auger effect because Pierre Victor Auger, a French scientist, discovered it two years later. Meitner and Hahn were research partners for around 30 years. During their research, they were one of the first to isolate the isotope protactinium-231, according to Encyclopedia Britannica. Education:Because of Austrian restrictions on female education, Meitner wasn't allowed to attend college; however, her family could afford private education, which she completed in 1901. She went on to graduate school at the University of Vienna. Inspired by her teacher, physicist Ludwig Boltzmann, she studied physics and focused her research on radioactivity. She became the second woman to receive a doctorate degree at the university in 1905. Shortly thereafter, physicist Max Planck allowed her to sit in on his lectures — a rare gesture for him; before then, he had rejected any women wanting to attend his lectures. Meitner later became Planck's assistant. She also worked with Hahn, and together they discovered several isotopes. Experience: Started 1905 where he graduated from school and retired to England in 1960.

Maria

Maria Goeppert-Mayer

She was born on June 28, 1906, in Kattowitz, Upper Silesia, then Germany, the only child of Friedrich Goeppert and his wife Maria, nee Wolff. On her father’s side, she is the seventh straight generation of university professors. Most famous for:of Physics at theThe German-born American theoretical physicist proposed the nuclear shell model of the atomic nucleus and in 1963 became the second woman to win a Nobel Prize in Physics. Goeppert-Mayer’s mathematical model explained why certain numbers of nucleons (protons and neutrons) in a nucleus result in stable atomic configurations. Her contributions were celebrated by her appointment as full Professor University of California and her election as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Other achievements: Long before Goeppert-Mayer stood on that stage in Stockholm, however, she had already made some major contributions to physics. While still a graduate student in Gottingen, she predicted the phenomenon of double photon emission. This occurs when two photons are absorbed by a molecule simultaneously, causing the molecule to move to a higher energy state. When Goeppert-Mayer proposed this, there was no way to actually test it. Her explanation was so clear, however, that all the members of her Ph.D. examining committee, which included the Nobel Laureates Max Born, James Franck, and Adolf Windaus, praised her work. Education:Education:In the spring of 1924 she enrolled at the University at Göttingen, with the intention of becoming a mathematician. But soon she found herself more attracted to physics. This was the time when quantum mechanics was young and exciting. Experience:1926 when she started going to a university until 1975 when she died.

Ruby

Ruby Payne-Scott

She was an Australian pioneer in radiophysics and radio astronomy, and was the first female radio astronomer. Most famous for:First person to consider the possibility of radio astronomy.The Australian was a pioneer in radio astronomy, the study of celestial objects at radio frequencies, and radiophysics. The first ever female radio astronomer, Payne-Scott was instrumental in making Australia a global leader in radio astronomy in the 1940s. She discovered several types of radiation bursts originating from the sun and played a major role in the first-ever radio astronomical interferometer observation, an important investigative technique in astronomy. Other achievements:Ruby Payne-Scott had a remarkable career at CSIRO as a radio astronomer where she worked on the development of World War II radar as well as in solar astronomy. In March 1944, she and Joseph Pawsey carried out an initial radio astronomy experiment from the Madsen Building in the grounds of Sydney University. This was followed in 1945 by her carrying out some of the key early solar radio astronomy observations at Dover Heights (Sydney). In the years 1945 to 1947, she discovered three of the five categories of solar bursts originating in the solar corona and made major contributions to the techniques of radio astronomy. Education:She was then at Sydney Girl’s High School obtaining a leaving certificate in 1928. At the young age of 16, she began Sydney University and graduated in 1933 (course finished in 1932) with First-Class Honours in physics and maths. She was just the third woman to graduate in physics from the University of Sydney. Her MSc in 1936 was in physics, having worked on a medical physics project at the Cancer Research Institute at Sydney University. Experience: 1933 when she graduated until 1981 when she died.

Marie

Marie Curie

Discovered of the elements Polonium and Radium

  1. 2 time Noble prize winner
    • Noble Prize in Physics 1903
    • Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1911
  2. First female professor at Sarbonne
  3. Found the Radium Center which is a mainstream hub for radioactivity research

Education background: studied at the Sorbonne in Paris where she obtained Licenciateships in Physics and the Mathematical Sciences