Episode 040 - The Queen of Carbon

Emma tells Emlyn about the physicist and electrical engineer, Dr. Mildred Dresselhaus, who studied all things carbon and Emlyn tells Emma about the diet of saber-toothed cats and dire wolves! 

Sources

Main Story - Dr. Mildred Dresselhaus

1. Weil, Martin. “Mildred Dresselhaus, physicist dubbed ‘queen of carbon science,’ dies at 86.” Washington Post. 2017 https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/mildred-dresselhaus-physicist-dubbed-queen-of-carbon-dies-at-86/2017/02/22/3355d3a2-f8a7-11e6-be05-1a3817ac21a5_story.html?noredirect=on
2. Mildred Dresselhaus Autobiography for the Kavli Prize. http://kavliprize.org/sites/default/files/%25nid%25/autobiagraphies_attachments/Mildred_Dresselhaus_Biography_0.pdf
3. Anderson, Mark. “Mildred Dresselhaus: The Queen of Carbon.” IEEE Spectrum. 2015. https://spectrum.ieee.org/geek-life/profiles/mildred-dresselhaus-the-queen-of-carbon
4. MILDRED DRESSELHAUS: An Interview Conducted by Kelsey Irvin, IEEE History Center, 11 July 2013. Interview # 650 for the IEEE History Center, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. https://ethw.org/Oral-History:Mildred_Dresselhaus
5. Mildred Dresselhaus. The Franklin Institute. https://www.fi.edu/laureates/mildred-s-dresselhaus
6. Angier, Natalie. “Carbon Catalyst for Half a Century.” The New York Times. 2012. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/03/science/carbon-catalyst-for-half-a-century.html
7. MIT News Office. “Institute Professor Emerita Mildred Dresselhaus, a pioneer in the electronic properties of materials, dies at 86.” 2017. http://news.mit.edu/2017/institute-professor-emerita-mildred-dresselhaus-dies-86-0221

Women who Werk 

1. DeSantis et al 2019 Current biology paper: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdfExtended/S0960-9822(19)30786-9
2. Science daily article: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190805111913.htm

Music

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Emilio Segre Visual Archives/american Institute Of Physics

Episode 039 - The Drug Detective

Emlyn tells Emma about the FDA scientist that kept the birth-defect causing drug, Thalidomide, off the shelves in the US, and Emma tells Emlyn about the *power* of vitamin supplements! 

Sources

Main Story - Dr. Frances Oldham Kelsey

1. Transcripts of Dr. Kelsey: https://www.fda.gov/media/89162/download
2. "Frances Oldham Kelsey: Medical reviewer famous for averting a public health tragedy" : https://www.fda.gov/about-fda/virtual-exhibits-fda-history/frances-oldham-kelsey-medical-reviewer-famous-averting-public-health-tragedy
3. "The Woman Who Stood Between America and a Generation of ‘Thalidomide Babies’" by Leila McNeill: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/woman-who-stood-between-america-and-epidemic-birth-defects-180963165/
4. Wikipedia article about Frances Oldham Kelsey: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Oldham_Kelsey
5. "Frances Oldham Kelsey, Who Saved U.S. Babies From Thalidomide, Dies at 101" by Robert D.  McFadden: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/08/science/frances-oldham-kelsey-fda-doctor-who-exposed-danger-of-thalidomide-dies-at-101.html?_r=0
6. Biography of Dr. Frances Oldham Kelsey: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_182.html

Women who Werk

Johns Hopkins Medicine. "Vast majority of dietary supplements don't improve heart health or put off death, study finds." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 16 July 2019. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190716095529.htm

Music

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Wikipedia

The White House

Short Stories 1 - Communist Cancers

This week we change up the format and talk about TWO historical women in science! Emlyn tells Emma about Dr. Yvonne Barr, who helped discover the first cancer-causing virus in humans, and Emma tells Emma about Dr. Sameera Moussa, an egyptian nuclear physicist who worked to make the medical use of nuclear technology affordable to all! 

Sources

Story 1 - Dr. Yvonne Barr

1. The Cancer Virus: The story of Epstein-Barr Virus. D.H. Crawford, A. Richinson, and I. Johnnessen. 2014. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK
2. Video of Dr. Yvonne Barr for 50th anniversary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MXFUHBRQjo 
3. UK Cancer Research Institute, https://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2014/03/26/50-years-of-epstein-barr-virus/ 
4. “Viral Causes of Lymphoma: The History of Epstein-Barr Virus and Human T-Lymphotropic Virus” by Daniel Esau, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5621661/pdf/10.1177_1178122X17731772.pdf 
5. Cancer virus discovery helped by delayed flight, https://www.bbc.com/news/health-26857610 

Story 2 -  Dr. Sameera Moussa 

1. Sameera Moussa by Ignite Global Fund for Women http://ignite.globalfundforwomen.org/be-the-spark/sameera-moussa
2. Decou, Christopher. 2018. “This Week in Science: Sameera Moussa, the Egyptian Mother of Nuclear Energy.” https://medium.com/@ccdecou/week-science-history-sameera-moussa-egyptian-89cdc6312838

Further reading on gender equality issues in STEM:

1. Old boy's club of 1989: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277539589800111
2. Negative and marginalizing interactions limiting women's access to important resources: http://www.dl.begellhouse.com/journals/00551c876cc2f027,31a33a3e53bad464,08629c0a217631d5.html
3. Sexism and microaggressions: https://journals.aps.org/prper/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.12.020119
4. Research labs described as a “chilly place” for women: http://www.dl.begellhouse.com/journals/00551c876cc2f027,3d9029c134ca6690,734a6ef163b4eb9c.html
5. Lack of female gatekeepers for research funding:  https://www.ingenere.it/en/articles/gate-keeping-and-gender-challenge-science
6. More ways in which STEM graduate environments disfavour women: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1179/0308018815Z.000000000112
7. An article in science magazine about the issue:  https://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2018/10/when-you-re-only-woman-challenges-female-phd-students-male-dominated-cohorts

Music

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Episode 038 - The Dark Side of Matter

Emma tells Emlyn about the astronomer, Dr Vera Rubin, who found the best evidence of dark matter, and Emlyn tells Emma about research showing that male ecologists/zoologists rarely co-author papers with women! 

MERCH here: https://www.redbubble.com/people/STEMFatalePod 

Sources

Main Story - Vera Rubin

1. Interview of Vera Rubin by Alan Lightman on 1989 April 3, Niels Bohr Library & Archives, American Institute of Physics, College Park, MD USA. https://www.aip.org/history-programs/niels-bohr-library/oral-histories/33963
2. Carnegie Science Staff Bio for Vera Rubin. http://dtm.carnegiescience.edu/people/vera-c-rubin
3. Irion, R. (2002). The Bright Face behind the Dark Sides of Galaxies. Science, 295(5557), 960-961. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3076066 
4. Overbye, Dennis (2016) “Vera Rubin, 88, Dies; Opened Doors in Astronomy, and for Women.” https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/27/science/vera-rubin-astronomist-who-made-the-case-for-dark-matter-dies-at-88.html?login=facebook
5. Rubin, Vera C. (2011). An Interesting Voyage. Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics, 49(1), 1-28. https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev-astro-081710-102545

Women who werk 

Salerno, P. E., Páez-Vacas, M., Guayasamin, J. M. & Stynoski, J. L. Male principal investigators (almost) don’t publish with women in ecology and zoology. PLoS ONE 14, e0218598–14 (2019). https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0218598 

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Carnegie Institution of Washington, via Associated Press

Episode 037 - Conservation Sensation!

Emlyn tells Emma about the marine biologist, writer, and environmentalist, Rachel Carson, and Emma tells Emlyn about a heck of a lot of boss ladies!

Sources

Main Story - Rachel Carson

1. Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Carson
2. Women's History: https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/rachel-carson
3. American Chemical Society: https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/whatischemistry/landmarks/rachel-carson-silent-spring.html
4. Fire Ants Video: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:16-p-1402-2_Fire_Ants_on_Trial.webm

Women who werk

• Jess Wade was awarded the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire! https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/191453/imperial-academics-awarded-honours-queen/
• Xinzhu Wei and Rasmus Nielsen find that mutations in the CCR5 gene that make some people resistant to HIV may also reduce longevity. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-019-0459-6
• Olga Troyanskaya and a team of researchers develop a machine learning model that identified mutations in non-coding regions of the genome that are associated with autism. https://www.simonsfoundation.org/2019/05/27/autism-noncoding-mutations/

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Alfred Eisenstaedt/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

Episode 036 - The BALLer method

Emma tells Emlyn about the chemist who found an effective treatment for leprosy, and Emlyn tells Emma about emotional contagion in ravens! 

Sources

Main Story - Alice Augusta Ball

1. Brown, Jeannette. African American Women Chemists. Oxford University Press, 2012.
2. UW School of Pharmacy. “UWSOP alumni legend Alice Ball, Class of 1914, solved leprosy therapy riddle.” 2017. https://sop.washington.edu/uwsop-alumni-legend-alice-ball-class-of-1914-solved-leprosy-riddle/
3. Brewster, Carisa D. “How the Woman Who Found a Leprosy Treatment Was Almost Lost to History.” National Geographic. 2018. https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/02/alice-ball-leprosy-hansens-disease-hawaii-womens-history-science/

Women who werk

• Adriaense, J. E. C., Martin, J. S., Schiestl, M., Lamm, C. & Bugnyar, T. Negative emotional contagion and cognitive bias in common ravens (Corvus corax). Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 201817066 (2019). https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2019/05/14/1817066116
• Ars Technica article by Scott K Johnson: https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/05/watching-a-hangry-friend-makes-a-raven-a-pessimist/

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

University of Hawai’i

Episode 035 - Authoritarian Seaweed

Emlyn tells Emma about the Pacific phycologist and Hawaiian ethnobotanist, Dr. Isabella Aiona Abbott, and Emma tells Emlyn about the body mass index (BMI) of Marvel characters!

Sources

Main Story - Isabella Aiona Abbott

1. LONG STORY SHORT WITH LESLIE WILCOX. Isabella Aiona Abbott. https://www.pbshawaii.org/long-story-short-with-leslie-wilcox-isabella-aiona-abbott/
2. Stanford News, Isabella Abbott, world-renowned Stanford algae expert, dies at 91” https://news.stanford.edu/news/2010/december/izzie-abbott-obit-120710.html
3. “Pioneering professor is first lady of limu” by Jennifer Crites http://www.hawaii.edu/malamalama/2010/10/isabella-abbott/
4. Isabella Aiona Abbott: 2001 Distinguished Economic Botanist: Interpreting Pre-Western Hawaiian Culture as an Ethnobotanist. (2002). Economic Botany, 56(1), 3-6. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/stable/4256514
5. “Inspiration of Izzie” by Julie Packard https://www.huffpost.com/entry/inspiration-from-izzie_n_791382
6. “A tribute to Isabella Aiona Abbott on the occasion of her 85th birthday. Happy Birthday Izzie!” by Huisman J.M. and Norris J.N. Cryptogamie, Algol., 2004, 25 (3): 219-239 https://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/23539/1/tribute%20to%20isabella%20abbott.pdf

Women who werk

1. Scientists find a possible biomarker for detecting CTE

• https://www.livescience.com/65434-cte-concussion-biomarker-tau.html
• https://n.neurology.org/content/early/2019/05/08/WNL.0000000000007608

2. Captain Dorito and the bombshell

• https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/05/190501153356.html
• https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Febs0000164

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Stanford University

Episode 034 - A-Hedy of Her Time

Emma tells Emlyn about the Hollywood star and inventor, Hedy Lamarr, and Emlyn tells Emma about the book, Invisible women! Apologies on this episode, we get excited, and there is quite a bit of audio distortion. 

Sources

Main Story - Hedy Lamarr

1. Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story. Directed by Alexandra Dean (2017).
2. George, Alice. “Thank This World War II-Era Film Star for Your Wi-Fi.” Smithsonianmag.com. Aug. 4, 2019. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/thank-world-war-ii-era-film-star-your-wi-fi-180971584/
3. Schearer, Steven M.  Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr. Sept. 28, 2010. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=d4hLFzsNgKEC&oi=fnd&pg=PT4&dq=hedy+lamarr&ots=uZOGX1rctz&sig=kokzynKHFjilAy2HGANNJ9PphcQ#v=onepage&q&f=false
4. Ouellette, Jennifer. Hop, Skip and a Jump: Remembering Hedy Lamarr. Jan. 9, 2012. https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cocktail-party-physics/hop-skip-and-a-jump-remembering-hedy-lamar/

Women who werk

Caroline Criado Perez’s book entitled, “Invisible women: data bias in a world designed for men”.

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

Zeitgeist Films

Episode 033 - Rift Valleys and Girl Talk

Emlyn tells Emma about the cartographer and oceanographer, Marie Tharp, who mapped the ocean floor and found evidence for continental drift, and Emma tells Emlyn about research on sex differences in spatial reasoning!

Sources

Main Story - Marie Tharp

1. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute article, “Marie Tharp”: https://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=7500&tid=282&cid=23306
2. “Marie Tharp - Plate Techtonics Pioneer” by Hali Felt: https://www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/archive/27/6/pdf/i1052-5173-27-6-32.pdf
3. “Marie Tharp, The Woman Who Discovered The Backbone Of Earth” by David Bressan, Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidbressan/2018/07/30/hundreds-missing-and-many-feared-dead-after-laos-dam-collapse/#2d5f9e17f91b
4. “How One Brilliant Woman Mapped the Secrets of the Ocean Floor | Short Film Showcase” by National Geographic https://youtu.be/vE2FK0B7gPo
5. Four facts about Marie Tharp, the woman whose art mapped the bottom of the sea by Cassie Freund: https://massivesci.com/articles/marie-tharp-bottom-ocean-maps/

Women who werk

Researchers Jillian E. Lauer, Eukyung Yhang, and Stella F. Lourenco describe the development of gender differences in spatial reasoning.

Journal article: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2019-17809-001?doi=1

Summary: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190411154728.htm

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

“I’m on a boat” by Lonely Island

Cover Image

https://exploration.marinersmuseum.org/subject/marie-tharp/

Episode 032 - Easley Does It

Emma tells Emlyn about the NASA computer, mathematician, and rocket scientist, Annie Easley, and Emlyn tells Emma about the first female winner of the Abel Prize, Dr. Karen Uhlenbeck! 

MERCH here: https://www.redbubble.com/people/STEMFatalePod 

Sources

Main Story - Annie J. Easley

1. Interview of Annie J. Easley by Sandra Johnson, 2001, for the NASA Johnson Space Center Oral History Project. https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/NASA_HQ/Herstory/EasleyAJ/easleyaj.htm
2. “Annie Easley, Computer Scientist” by Anne K. Mills. 2014. https://www.nasa.gov/feature/annie-easley-computer-scientist
3. “The Trailblazing Human Computer Who Represented a New Age of Working Women” By Belle Hutton. 2018. http://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/gallery/9695/annie-easley/4

Women who werk - Dr. Karen Uhlenbeck

1. “Retired UT professor becomes first woman to win prestigious prize in mathematics” by Brenna Hinshaw. http://www.dailytexanonline.com/2019/03/25/retired-ut-professor-becomes-first-woman-to-win-prestigious-prize-in-mathematics
2. “Karen Uhlenbeck, Uniter of Geometry and Analysis, Wins Abel Prize” by Erica Klarreich. https://www.quantamagazine.org/karen-uhlenbeck-uniter-of-geometry-and-analysis-wins-abel-prize-20190319/
3. “Karen Uhlenbeck Is First Woman to Win Abel Prize for Mathematics” by https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/19/science/karen-uhlenbeck-abel-prize.html

Music

“Work” by Rihanna

“Mary Anning” by Artichoke

Cover Image

NASA