3. Biology
“It was due to the camouflage intentionally placed over their presence in science” — Margaret Rossiter.
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Adriana C. Ocampo
Adriana C. Ocampo is a Colombian-American planetary geologist whose work has played an important role in space science and planetary exploration.
Born in Barranquilla, Columbia in 1955, she developed an interest in space at an early age. After moving to the United States at the age of fourteen, Ocampo volunteered at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, before earning her BS in geology and MS in planetary geology from California State University (LA and Northridge). Later, she completed her PhD in planetary science from the University of Amsterdam.
Ocampo’s research has focused on understanding how asteroid and comet impacts can shape planets and influence the conditions for life. One of her most notable contributions was her identification of the Chicxulub impact crater, Mexico as the site of an asteroid impact that contributed to the extinction of more than 50% of the earth's species, including the dinosaurs, around 66 million years ago.
Beyond Earth, Ocampo has played leading roles in several NASA missions. She is responsible for the New Frontier Exploration missions, the Juno mission to Jupiter and New Horizons to Pluto. Through this work, she has contributed to understanding planetary formation and the broader history of the solar system. Ocampo is also known for her work promoting diversity and inclusion in science, particularly encouraging young people from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in STEM.
Key Takeaways: Adriana C. Ocampo’s work helped to demonstrate how asteroid impacts can dramatically shape planetary history, including influencing mass extinction and the development of life on Earth. Her research on impact craters, particularly the Chicxulub impact crater in Mexico, greatly advanced scientific understanding of geology, planetary science and Earth’s place in the wider solar system. Through her leadership on major NASA missions, particularly the Juno mission to Jupiter, she contributed to modern space exploration and planetary research. Ocampo is also an extremely important role model and champion for diversity and inclusion.
Charlotte Auerbach
Charlotte Auerbach, Lotte, to her friends, was born to a Jewish family in 1889. She went to school in Berlin and studied at Berlin University in 1919, where her father encouraged her to study widely before she picked an area of concentration. Excellent advice. Lucky for us, she chose biology. Despite the fact that Auerbach excelled in her studies, she doubted whether she could succeed as a scientist. And while she criticized herself for lacking original scientific ideas, later in life she would explain that her determination and careful methodology were what contributed to her scientific success. In a letter to a colleague from 197,6 Auerbach wrote, “What I think are my merits are these: I am terribly thorough.. Without being especially fertile in ideas myself, I am very critical of those of others and particularly of the unproved application of fashionable interpretations to one’s data.”
Aucherbach eventually sought refuge in Edinburgh after she was fired from her teaching job in Berlin, a victim of Hitler’s anti-Semitic laws. As part of the war effort, Aucherbach, along with her colleagues at the University of Edinburgh, tried to understand the impact of mustard gas on human cells. Later, she would explain that the gas burned her skin as she worked with it. What she found was transformative for the science of genetics: mustard gas caused mutations in similar ways to X-rays. Using fruit flies as her model systems, Aucherbach treated the flies with mustard gas and then counted how many flies passed on damaged DNA to their children. If the DNA was indeed pasted on, this would suggest the damage was permanent – or what is known as mutation. Though her findings would be kept secret until after the conclusion of the war, their significance was quickly recognized and celebrated. Her work opened up new possibilities for the study of genetic mutation and is still cited frequently today. Building on her knowledge of genetic mutation, Aucherbach was one of the first scientists to warn of the danger of nuclear radiation and supported the cause of nuclear disarmament. She died in 1994.
Key Takeaways: We know that DNA can be damaged by all kinds of chemicals and by radiation. We also know that changes in DNA can lead to cancer and other diseases. Aucherbach’s work offered foundational insights about gene mutation. Her work also contributed to scientists' ability to alter genes in an effort to better understand disease.
Flossie Wong Staal
Flossie Wong-Staal was born in Guangzhou, China, on August 27, 1946, as Yee Ching Wong. She and her family moved to Hong Kong when she was 7 years old. She excelled academically as a child, especially when it came to science. When she turned 18, she chose a more westernized name and emigrated to the United States. Flossie was the first woman in her family to obtain a higher education. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in bacteriology in 1968 and a Ph.D. in molecular biology in 1972, both from the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1973, Wong-Staal began a postdoctoral position at the Laboratory of Tumor Cell Biology, led by biomedical researcher Robert C. Gallo, in the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland.
Flossie co-authored more than 100 journal articles on AIDS and certain leukemias that affect the human species. She loved Molecular biology because it allowed her the ability to study the development of new techniques in the biology field, such as cloning and studying genes in detail. She would conduct research into genes associated with different cancers. In the late 1970s, her team conducted research on the human T-cell Leukemia virus, where they studied the molecular biology of HTLV-1, leading to discoveries that would advance the studies of human retroviruses. Flossie’s research on HIV/AIDS became important because she was one of the first individuals in the group of NIH researchers who acknowledged and proved HIV to be the cause of AIDS.
In 1990, Flossie stepped down from her position working at the NIH to go to UCSD, where she would start the Center of AIDS Research. She became the director of this newly-made center in 1994. Flossie and her team made numerous discoveries that would shape the development of effective antiviral therapies that would take place to manage AIDS in the world. She became a member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, a prestigious honor to this day.
She passed away in July of 2020 due to complications from pneumonia.
Key Takeaways: Flossie made numerous contributions and advancements in immunology and virology, where her ideas are applied to modern medicine and diseases, such as COVID-19.
“Flossie also discovered molecular evidence of micro-variation in HIV, which led to the use of "drug cocktails" to manage AIDS. She provided the molecular biology necessary for the second-generation blood test for HIV. She was the most-cited female scientist of the 1980s, with nearly 7,800 citations, according to an October 1990 article in The Scientist.” – NIH In Memoriam
Mary Leakey
Mary Douglas (Nicol) Leakey was a British archaeologist and paleoanthropologist whose work fundamentally changed our understanding of early human evolution.
Born in 1914, Leakey developed an interest for archaeology and prehistory from a young age. She spent her childhood traveling throughout Europe and at seventeen, she joined the Hembury Dig in Devon, England, as an illustrator under the renowned female archaeologist, Dorothy Liddell . In 1933, she met Louis Leakey, a palaeoanthropologist and archaeologist, whom she soon married.
Mary Leakey is best known for her discoveries at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, where she discovered one of the earliest known stone tools, suggesting that tool use began far earlier than previously thought.
Her most famous discovery came in 1976 at Laetoli, Tanzania, where she discovered fossilised hominin footprints preserved in volcanic ash. The footprints appeared to match locally found fossils of the species Australopithecus afarensis and provided clear evidence that early human ancestors were walking upright 3.6 million years ago. Her team also uncovered the remains of 25 early hominids and 15 new animal species.
Leakey was known for her meticulous excavation methods and insistence on careful documentation. Her methods established higher scientific standards in palaeoanthropology and archaeology. In 1983 she retired from fieldwork and moved to Nairobi where she continued to contribute to science and research until her death in 1996, at the age of 83.
Key Takeaways: Mary Leakey’s work provided some of the strongest physical evidence for early human evolution. She showed that stone tool use and upright walking, also known as bipedal locomotion, existed much earlier than researchers once thought. Her discoveries at Olduvai Gorge and Laetoli helped to establish the continent of Africa as the birthplace of humanity and greatly advanced the study of palaeoanthropology and prehistoric archaeology. Furthermore, beyond her individual finds, Leakey’s careful, meticulous and evidence-driven approach set new standards for archaeological fieldwork.
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Mary-Claire King
Mary-Claire King is an American geneticist whose work had a major impact on medicine, human genetics and medicine.
King is best known for discovering that some breast and ovarian cancers are inherited. In 1990, she identified the BRCA1 gene and showed that certain mutations greatly increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. This discovery changed cancer research and medical practice, leading to genetic screening, early detection and preventative treatment, saving many lives.
Beyond medicine, King pioneered the use of genetic science for social justice. King developed DNA based methods to identify missing children who had been taken from their families during Argentina’s military dictatorship. Her approach allowed many families to be reunited. King also laid the foundation for modern forensic genetics and her approach has been used worldwide to identify victims of war, displacement and trafficking.
King has also co-led an Israeli-Palestinian-American collaboration to identify the genetic causes of Mendelian disorders, and more recently made key contributions to understand the molecular underpinnings of schizophrenia.
Overall, King’s career shows how scientific research can have a direct and meaningful impact on people’s lives.
Key Takeaways: Mary-Claire King is a renowned American geneticist who demonstrated that genetics play a crucial role in inherited disease. She is most famously known for identifying the BRCA1 gene, linked to breast and ovarian cancer. She also contributed to understanding human evolution by showing the close genetic relationship between humans and chimpanzees. In addition, King also pioneered the use of DNA analysis as a tool for human rights, helping to reunite families and identify victims of political violence. Her work highlights how scientific research can have profound medical, social and ethical impacts.
Maxine Singer
Maxine Singer is an American molecular biologist whose work greatly influenced the study of genetics and molecular biology.
Born in 1931 in New York City, Singer developed an interest in science at an early age. She went on to major in Chemistry at Swarthmore College and later completed her PhD in biochemistry from Yale University. After completing her doctoral training, Singer joined the National Institutes of Health, where she spent much of her scientific career.
Singer’s research focused on the structure and function of DNA and RNA, the molecules that carry genetic information. She studied how DNA is organized within cells. One of her most important discoveries was showing that some repeated sections of DNA, once thought of as useless, waste DNA, can actually move around within the genome. Singer discovered how these moving elements can sometimes cause mutations, helping scientists better understand genetic diseases.
Singer worked during a period when scientists were only just beginning to understand genetic information. Only three years after the double helix structure of DNA was discovered, Singer joined a small group researching the emerging field of nucleic acid research. It was her work here on the structure and synthesis of RNA that allowed Nirenberg and Matthaei to unravel the genetic code in the 1960s, a discovery that explained how DNA instructions are translated into proteins.
Beyond the lab, Singer was also deeply involved in science policy and education. She was frequently called to testify before Congress on matters relating to stem cell research and human cloning. She also helped to organize the Asilomar Conference in 1975 at which scientists agreed to impose restrictions on DNA research to protect population health.
Key Takeaways: Maxine Singer played an important role in some of the earliest discoveries in molecular biology, especially in understanding how genetic information works. Her research on DNA and RNA made it possible to decipher the genetic code and showed some areas of DNA once thought to be useless can sometimes cause genetic mutations and disease. Beyond her research, Singer helped set safety guidelines for early genetic engineering and strongly supported science education.
Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson was born on May 27, 1907, in Springdale, Pennsylvania. She gained a love of nature from her mother who taught her about local wildlife in rural PA. As a child she sought to become a writer and began her college career as an English major at Pennsylvania College for Women (now Chatham University). She quickly switched her degree to Biology. She graduated with her Bachelors in 1929, then went on to earn her Masters in Zoology from Johns Hopkins University in 1932.
In her early career, Rachel was a faculty member of the University of Maryland where she taught for five years. However, the Great Depression forced her to leave her postgraduate studies at the Marine Biological Laboratory, the place where she initially fell in love with the sea. In 1936, she took a job at the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries, later know as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, as an aquatic biologist. She worked there until 1952 while also pursuing her dream of being a writer. In 1936, she became the Editor-in-Chief of all publications for the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Rachel Carson is remembered today for her legacy as an activist. She wrote pamphlets on conservation and natural resources, published articles in The Atlantic Monthly and The New Yorker, and most famously wrote Silent Spring published in 1962 which warned about the dangers of environmental pollution, with a focus on dangers of pesticides. Even as her health got worse due to her breast cancer diagnosis, she advocated for stronger environmental regulations, going as far as testifying before the Senate Committee on Commerce. Carson passed away in 1964 at her home in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Key Takeaways: Rachel Carson was a woman of immense strength. She learned how to balance a life dedicated to the environment while also pursuing her writing career. She gave up her studies regarding the sea, her one true love, to fight chemical companies and the use of pesticides. Her lasting legacy is the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency, the first Earth Day, and influencing several conservation policies, including the ban of DDT in 1972.
Sarah Blaffer Hrdy
Sarah Blaffer Hrdy is an American primatologist and anthropologist whose research has significantly transformed how scientists understand human evolution, parenting and social behaviour. Her research has helped to challenge long-standing assumptions about motherhood and caregiving.
After earning her Bachelor degree from Wellesley College, Hrdy completed her doctoral research at Harvard University. During this time she studied langur monkeys in India, observing social structures, mating strategies and infant care. These observations provided the foundation for her later research.
One of Hrdy’s most influential findings came from her research on maternal behavior and cooperative breeding. Using both primate studies and ethnographic research, Hrdy’s work challenged traditional views on maternal instincts, showing that maternal behaviour is flexible, rather than automatic. She also explored practices such as infantcide in animals, arguing that these behaviours should be understood as evolutionary responses rather than moral failings.
Hrdy also famously introduced the concept of “alloparenting,”, which refers to the cooperative raising of children by mothers alongside fathers, family, and other members of the community. She argued that this shared caregiving system played a crucial role in the evolution of human sociality and development. Her work directly challenged the male-centric models in evolutionary psychology and helped to re-centre women and caregivers in theories of human evolution.
Key Takeaways: Sarah Blaffer Hrdy’s research showed that parenting and reproduction are shaped by social and ecological conditions, not simply fixed instincts. She demonstrated how cooperative caregiving, also known as alloparenting, was essential to human evolution and helped to explain the development of communication and social bonds. Hrdy’s work challenged simplistic ideas about “natural” motherhood and dated, male-centred evolutionary theories. Her research remains highly influential in evolutionary psychology and anthropology.
Sylvia Alice Earle
Sylvia Alice Earle, called “Her Deepness” by the New Yorker and New York Times, is an American oceanographer and conservationist whose work has transformed scientific understanding of Earth's oceans and strengthened global efforts to protect them.
Earle was born in New Jersey in 1935 and spent her early childhood surrounded by nature in a small form. Her love for the ocean was born after her family relocated to Florida when Earle was a teenager.
Earle pursued higher education in botany and marine science, focusing especially on ocean plants such as algae. At a time when underwater research was still quite limited, she began using scuba diving as a scientific tool, allowing her to study marine ecosystems directly in their natural habitats. This hands-on approach led to detailed documentation of marine plant life and helped to establish new standards for field-based ocean research.
Throughout her career, Earle has led more than 100 expeditions, logging more than 7000 hours underwater. She also led the first underwater female team during the second Tektite Project in 1970, after being rejected for the first project because she was a woman. She later served as the first female Chief Scientist of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration where she helped to guide research and policy related to ocean health. In 2012, she also set a record for solo diving in 1000 metres depth.
More recently, Earle has focused on conservation and public education. Earle has authored more than 190 publications on marine science, she is the founder of Mission Blue, SEAalliance and chair and founder of the Deep Ocean Exploration and Research (DOER Marine). She remains a champion of sea exploration, marine science and environmental advocacy.
Key Takeaways: Sylvia Earle is an oceanographer, author and conservationist whose research reshaped underwater research. Her expeditions produced detailed knowledge of marine ecosystems and deep-sea environments that were previously poorly understood. She also had a huge impact on environmental policy and conservation, founding several organizations to protect marine environments.
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