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Rosa Parks
By Sara Fleming
After a stressful day working as a seamstress, Rosa Parks
walked to the back of a city bus in the colored section and
chose her seat. As the bus continued its route, more white pas-
sengers entered the bus. The driver of the bus walked towards
the back of the bus and asked Rosa to surrender her seat, but
she refused. The bus driver called the police, Rosa was arrest-
ed, and a revolutionary movement shook the town.
The head of the local chapter of NAACP, E.D. Nixon, asked
the black community to boycott the buses on the day of Dec.
5; Rosa’s trial would take place on that day, according to Biog-
raphy.com. The bus boycott was a success, but meanwhile at
Rosa’s trial, she was found guilty and was fined a total of $14.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott, as it was come to be known by, was such a success that it was continued for
many more months; The finances for city transit took a severe plummet. However, there were many opposers
to this boycott. E.D. Nixon and Martin Luther King Jr’s houses were bombed, black churches were burned, and
the city even canceled the insurance plan for the taxis boycotters were using instead of the bus. But the boycott
still raged on. Eventually, the African American community took action to the courts, where racial segregation
laws were deemed unconstitutional. And as they say, the rest is history.
oosevelt
bdel-Azim
activist, Elea-
in history. She
as her husband
anitarian cause
eneral Assem-
iminary United
person in 1947
o aided to cre-
. She really be-
here deserved
ons such as the
rograms for the
in the cause of
f they were de-
well. After her
erson of the Presidential Commission on the Status of
he workplace and helped them avoid injury and exploi-
s “one of the most esteemed women in the world”. She
generation of women.
Barbara McClintock
By Ahmad Abdel-Azim
Born in 1902, Barbara McClintock was truly a testimony to the influence of women in the field of genet-
ics. Her work in plant cytogenetics was a foundation for many of the most recent discoveries in genetics.
McClintock studied the heredity characteristics of organisms, such as corn. She
observed these characteristics from generation to generation on the chromosomal
level, trying to find the changes in chromosomes when the trait is passed down.
Later in her career, during the 1940’s and 1950’s, she proved the genetic concept
of chromosomal crossover during replication, where chromosomes exchange parts
of genetic material to make new chromosomes. This in turn leads to genetic varia-
tion in the species. She also discovered transposition, where genes move around
in the chromosome. Moreover, McClintock showed that genes were responsible
for the phenotypes of an organism. Her work was the basis for many of the dis-
coveries in the future, such as the discovery of DNA. The genetic material that she
proved to cross over during replication is now known to be DNA. Her incredible
work received recognition in 1983 when she was awarded t he Nobel Prize in
Physiology or Medicine “for her discovery of mobile genetic elements.” Barbara
McClintock died in 1992, a clearly significant woman in the field of genetics.
anging scientist,
r another in the
etition. After at-
lin worked in the
arbon and graph-
at Cambridge in
her most famous
istook her for a
n he realized his
t of her because
s and pubs were
fter hours to ex-
ermined to solve
Wilkins stole a
her scientist who
h look as though it is only supporting his discoveries.
continues and before dying of ovarian cancer in 1958,
virus, helping researchers progress in the medical and
Lise Meitner
By Ahmad Abdel-Azim
A brilliant woman in the shadows of
achievement, Lise Meitner, born in
1878, contributed to the discovery
of several concepts in radioactivity
and nuclear physics. Nevertheless,
she never received recognition for
her major contributions until after
her death. Meitner worked with the
chemist, Otto Hahn, for thirty years.
Together, they discovered the ele-
ment protactinium and the Auger
effect, where when an inner-level
electron is removed, an electron
from a higher energy level may fill
the vacancy, leading to a release of
energy. During World War II, Meit-
ner was forced to flee from Germany
to Sweden where she and Hahn con-
tinued their research apart. In 1939,
Meitner and Hahn discovered nucle-
ar fission. Subsequently, Meitner and
another man named Otto Frisch were
the first to conclude that nuclear fission, where the nucleus of an atom of
uranium is split into two smaller nuclei, must release a great deal of energy.
These discoveries Meitner and others made eventually led to the start of the
Manhattan project and nuclear weapons used duringWorldWar II. However,
in 1944, the Nobel Peace Prize for Chemistry was awarded to Otto Hahn for
his discoveries in nuclear fission. Meitner’s contributions to the discover-
ies were completely ignored despite her enormous contributions most likely
due to her flee from Germany. In 1966 her work was finally acknowledged
when Meitner, Hahn, and Strassman were awarded the Enrico Fermi Award.
In 1968, Lise Meitner, a truly influential woman in history, died in England.
To honor her, element number 109, Meitnerium (Mt), was named after Lise
Meitner. Many individuals even consider Meitner to be the “most significant
woman scientist of the 20th Century”.
ential pioneers
ey leave behind
s history month to
lebrate the invaluable
n have made to the
o do you think is the
oman in history?
Lila Metko
“Amelia Earheart flying
around the world is really
courageous especially for
that time.”
Nathan Figueroa
“Rosa Parks, because she
fought for her rights and
was brave enough to do
what she did at a date and
age where it was a big deal
because of all the racism
going on, and it did have an
impact of America today.”
Wyatt Marshall
“Judge Judy is inspirational
because she enforces the
law and helps people who
otherwise could not help
themselves.”
Franklin
n Ashour
cus on
men’s
tory
Photo from National Library of Medicine
Photo from National Library
of Medicine
Photo by National Archives
Photo by The Library of Congress
Photo by Department of Energy
National Archives
bdel-Azim, Kate Bennett, Jake Zajkowski