Let’s applaud

Discover the amazing achievements of these SCIENTIFIC SUPERSTARS from around the world.

Brahmagupta (598–670)

Indian astronomer Brahmagupta wrote books on mathematics and astronomy in poetry. He also ESTABLISHED rules for the number zero, fractions, and positive and negative numbers.

Bhˉaskara I (c.600–c.680)

The first person to use a circle to represent zero in the Hindu-Arabic numeral system was Indian MATHEMATICIAN and writer Bhˉaskara I. Although not much is known about his life, his writing centred on the planets, stars, and eclipses of the Sun and Moon.

Jane Marcet (1769–1858)

With the publication of her book Conversations on Chemistry in 1806, Englishwoman Jane Marcet became the world’s FIRST FEMALE SCIENCE WRITER. Aimed at uneducated girls, her work soon crossed the boundaries of gender, age, and race.

When an electric current flows through a wire, it produces a magnetic field like a magnet.

André-Marie Ampère (1775–1836)

French physicist Ampère established the new science of electric currents and magnetic fields, now called electromagnetism. His name is still heard today with the term AMPERE, the unit used to measure electric current.

Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner (1780–1849)

German chemist Döbereiner was known for spotting similarities between elements and grouping them together. He HELPED TO DEVELOP Dmitri Mendeleev’s periodic table into the version used today.

Mary Somerville (1780–1872)

The existence of the planet Neptune was correctly PREDICTED by this Scottish astronomer and science writer. In 1835, both Mary and German astronomer Caroline Herschel became the first female members of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Maria Mitchell (1818–1889)

This American astronomer is best known for spotting a comet through her telescope in 1847. At the time King Frederick VI of Denmark was giving prizes for the discovery of new comets, so Miss Mitchell’s Comet WON her a medal.

George Washington Carver (c.1864–1943)

This African-American scientist and inventor was nicknamed the Peanut Man after his research on crops, including peanuts, soybeans, and sweet potatoes. He also developed the TREATMENT for polio patients using peanut oil for massages.

Linus Pauling (1901–1994)

With hundreds of scientific papers to his name, American chemist Pauling wrote about chemical bonds and biology. He was the first person to win two individual NOBEL PRIZES – for Chemistry in 1954 and for Peace in 1962.

Twice winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, this British biochemist researched INSULIN and DNA to advance the areas of genetics and medicine. His Sanger sequencing technique (the method to determine the sequence of a DNA molecule) continues to be used today.

Katherine Johnson (born 1918)

This award-winning American mathematician worked as a HUMAN COMPUTER for NASA’s predecessor – National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). Johnson worked out complex calculations for space missions, including the trajectory for Alan Shepard, the first American in Space.

En deavour travelled 198 million km ( 123 million miles) and circled Ear th more than 4, 600 times.

Jocelyn Bell Burnell (born 1943)

The detection of radio pulses in the sky during the 1960s was conducted by this Irish astrophysicist. She found they were neutron stars (the remains of a superweight star) emitting radio waves, now called PULSARS.

Masatoshi Shima (born 1943)

Japanese engineer Shima was the brains behind the design of the world’s FIRST MICROPROCESSOR (the chip that controls a computer’s function) – the Intel 4004. This groundbreaking invention was manufactured in 1971.

Shirley Ann Jackson (born 1946)

American physicist Shirley Ann Jackson laid the foundations for many future communication DEVICES, including fibre-optic cables and advanced additions to telephones and fax machines. In 2014, she was awarded the country’s top prize, the National Medal of Science.

Craig Venter (born 1946)

The HUMAN GENOME PROJECT, which mapped human DNA, was masterminded by American biochemist Craig Venter. His institute also created the genetic material of a bacterium in 2010, resulting in the world’s first synthetic organism.

Mae C Jemison (born 1956)

History was made on 12 September 1992 when Jemison BLASTED OFF on board Endeavour, becoming the first AfricanAmerican in Space. Since then, she has focused on healthcare and technology for developing nations.

Fabiola Gianotti (born 1960)

Italy’s most prominent physicist is the first female DIRECTOR-GENERAL at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. Gianotti has written more than 500 scientific articles and has a host of awards to her name.

Brian Cox (born 1968)

This British professor of physics presents a wide VARIETY OF SCIENCE PROGRAMMES. A new generation of viewers can explore space, astronomy, and physics thanks to his relaxed style and accessible commentary.

Maryam Mirzakhani (1977–2017)

The first woman and Iranian to win the biggest honour in mathematics, the FIELDS MEDAL, was Maryam Mirzakhani. Her achievement in 2014 was the result of in-depth study of geometric shapes and curved surfaces.