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Women in Science: Print Sources

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1: International Women in Science Haines, C. M. C. (2001). International women in science : a biographical dictionary to
       1950. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Concerned with women in all countries involved in some field of science in memorable ways, the more than 360 entries in this alphabetically arranged biographical dictionary treat amateurs to professional scientists and range from agriculture to zoology. The time period covered extends from 1600 to women who started their careers by 1950. The greatest number of entries has to do with women born in Britain, although Australia, China, India, Kenya, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, and European countries are also represented. Some entries run only a few paragraphs, others may cover a page or more. Each entry provides education, employment, or marital status; some provide all three.
2: Women Scientists from Antiquity to the Present Herzenberg, C. L. (1986). Women scientists from antiquity to the present : an index :
       an international reference listing and biographical directory of some notable
       women scientists from ancient to modern times. West Cornwall, CT: Locust Hill
       Press.
Provides information and biographical references for approximately 2500 women who have worked in the fields of science, medicine, engineering and technology from antiquity to the time this list was compiled. Scientists are listed alphabetically, with coded information which refers the reader to 130 works for further specific information on these women.
3: Nobel Prize Women in Science McGrayne, S. B. (1998). Nobel Prize women in science : their lives, struggles, and
        momentous discoveries / Sharon Bertsch McGrayne. Secaucus, NJ: Carol Pub.
       Group.
McGrayne sketches the lives of all nine women who have won Nobel prizes in science and of six who almost won. The sketches provide basic information about families and education, and insights into the personalities, life styles, friends, and social factors. All the women were tough, dedicated, and determined, yet many were also kind, generous, and "mothering." Some married and survived because of supportive husbands and families; others remained single. Some developed their "femininity" and even sophisticated elegance, while others ignored social conventions and dressed as they wished. What unites them is their passion for science and their desire to know more despite wars, unavailability of jobs or research funds, and other challenges.
4: International Encyclopedia of Women Scientists Oakes, E. H. (2002). International encyclopedia of women scientists. New York, NY:
        Facts on File.
Several encyclopedias now available highlight women scientists from various disciplines, but none is as comprehensive, thorough, or detailed as Oakes's, which covers more than 500 scientists. Dating back to 400 BCE, it treats current, historical, and minority women scientists. The entries (for which an alphabetical list appears at the beginning of the volume) include biographical information that provides detailed descriptions of education, research, and notable accomplishments. Oakes also supplies an impressive, expansive set of indexes: general alphabetical, field of specialization, country of birth, country of major scientific activity, and year of birth.
5: The Scientific Lady Phillips, P. (1990). The scientific lady : a social history of women's scientific interests
        1520-1918. London : Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
Phillips's book is a well-written and well-researched project. Its detailed review of women and the development of British science complements Margaret Alic's Hypatia's Heritage (CH, Mar'87). Drawn from unique primary sources, Phillips's discussions of hitherto unknown women in science and in overlooked formal and informal educational settings, media, and scientific associations are important contributions. Phillips's insistence on using the modern word "science" rather than the historically accurate "natural philosophy," while expanding the subjects covered (mathematics and accounting as well as the traditional empirical fields), inappropriately negates the classism, sexism, and conflict present in early and current scientific work.
6: Renaissance Women in Science Van der Does, L. Q. (1999). Renaissance women in science. Lanham, MD: University
        Press of America.
Renaissance Women in Science is a collection of 16 brief biographies of 19th- and 20th-century women scientists, beginning with astronomer Maria Mitchell and concluding with X-ray crystallographer Dorothy Mary Crowfoot Hodgkin. The title reveals the guiding principle for selection as well as the way in which the biographies are presented: these women all made original contributions to their disciplines and shattered contemporary notions of feminine roles by choosing to subordinate domestic and family concerns to a life of scientific discovery.
7: Black Women Scientists in the United States Warren, W. (2000). Black Women Scientists in the United States (Race, Gender, and
       Science) (Hardcover). IN: Indiana University Press.
Black Women Scientists presents biographical sketches, alphabetically arranged, of more than 100 black women scientists, living and deceased. Contributions by most of the women are substantiated by primary source material, but some are included with only minimal documentation because they either appeared to be pioneers or showed promise of continued contribution. Most of the subjects hold PhDs, but some are MDs. Disciplines covered are anatomy, anthropology, astronautics and space science, biochemistry, biology, chemistry, geology, marine biology, mathematics, medicine, nutrition, pharmacology, physics, psychology, and zoology. The volume has indexes of disciplines and personal names and includes an appendix listing selected publications by many of the subjects in chronological order. There is very little reference material on black scientists in the US and even less that includes black women scientists. This book fills a void in most reference collections and will, one hopes, lead to other works documenting the contributions minorities have made to the sciences.
8: The History of Women and Science Weisbard, P. H. (1993). In P. H. Weisbard (Ed.), The History of women and science,
        health, and technology : a bibliographic guide to the professions and the
        disciplines. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin System, Women's studies
        Librarian.
The first edition (1988) focused on developing new college courses about the history of women in science and related fields, supporting integration of new feminist scholarship into existing survey courses, and providing guidance for professionals to explore the history of women in these disciplines. This updated and expanded edition contains a section of biographical and historical works for older children. This basic bibliography will be of considerable interest to feminist scholars and to those interested in shrinking the gender gap in science. It is organized in six parts: overviews, women in the scientific professions, health and biology, home economics/domestic science, technology, and children and young adult literature. The author index provides easy access. Invaluable for those designing new gender-centered courses, those wanting to make the history of women in these professions more accessible, and those seeking core lists of readings in these specialized areas.
9: A to Z of Women in Science... Yount, L. (1999). A to Z of women in science and math. New York, NY: Facts on File.
Yount's biographical dictionary profiles 150 women whose research has made direct contributions to science. Both present-day scientists and those from earlier periods from all countries are included. Entries are brief (one to two pages in length), are arranged alphabetically, and include bibliographies. The biographical sketches provide family background, education, personal obstacles overcome, and details about scientific work. Numerous indexes list the women by time period, field of study, country of birth, and country of scientific activity. Fifty black-and-white photographs complement the text. Fields covered range from astronomy and mathematics to physics and zoology. Readers will find new names here along with the familiar--Greek philosopher Hypatia, Marie Curie, Margaret Mead, Italian physicist Laura Bassi, astronomer Williamina Fleming, and biochemist Zhao Yufen.
10: Woman in Science Zahm, J. A. (1913). Woman in science : with an introductory chapter on woman's long
        struggle for things of the mind. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Mozans (an anagrammatic pseudonym for the Reverend John A. Zahn, C.S.C.) produced in Woman in Science a comprehensive survey of the role of women in intellectual society from ancient Greece up until the turn of the 20th century. His book is well written, easy to read, and only occasionally sounds as if it were published in 1913, the date of the original edition. The major thesis of this book - that women have not made greater contributions to science because of societal constraints, not because of inherent biological limitations (smaller brains, lesser muscle mass, frailer stature, etc.) - was derived from J.S. Mill, but clearly it needed reiteration in the early part of this century, and recent feminist scholarship has had to examine this issue again today. Although Mozans vigorously champions the scientific potential of women, he nonetheless reveals a somewhat patronizing attitude, when he points out that educated women make intellectually sympathetic companions for their husbands. The most valuable part of the book is the long introductory chapter on women's struggle for intellectual liberation - the later chapters on women in science have been superseded by more recent scholarship Book 10: Woman in Science Zahm, J. A. (1913). Woman in science : with an introductory chapter on woman's long struggle for things of the mind. Cambridge: MIT Press.
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