Agnesi, Maria Gaetana (1718-1799) Italian: Specialty: Analysis

She was an eldest child, encouraged by her father to pursue scientific interests. At 11, she was fluent in 7 languages. She realized that her knowledge should be used to the benefit of all Italian youth and she authored Instituzioni Analitiche (Foundations of Analysis) in 1748, a systematic presentation of algebra, analytic geometry, calculus and differential equations. Others translated her work due to its significance. She is famous for Curve of Agnesi, previously described by Fermat and Newton.

Bari, Nina Karlovna (1901-1961) Russian: Specialty: Trigonometry

She was a multitalented mathematician who had as one of her greatest strengths the ability to use the constructive method of proof. She was an expert in trigonometric series, presenting at international conferences while teaching at Moscow State University. She also was interested in the theory of functions of a real variable.

Bari, Ruth Aaronson (1917-) American: Specialty: Graph Theory

She earned her Ph. D. in Mathematics while being a parent to three daughters. She had interrupted her pursuit of mathematics and was placed on academic probation when she returned to her study of math. She was a teacher of mathematics as well as a researcher.

Bernstein, Dorothy Lewis (1914-1988) American: Specialty: Applied Math

She was primarily an educator. She was one of the initial users of computers in mathematics instruction (for statistical analysis) and developed an internship program to provide meaningful math experiences.

Marquise de Chatelet: Breteuil, Gabrielle-Emilie le Tonnelier (1706-1749) French; Specialty: Analysis

Generally referred to as Chatelet, she was raised among French royalty and married at 19. She had three children and then started her serious devotion to Mathematics. She and Voltaire became lovers and they worked together in writing commentary on a number of areas including the works of Newton and Leibniz. She also translated Newton’s work to French, making this knowledge available to other French speaking individuals.

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Cox, Gertrude Mary (1900-1978) American: Specialty: Statistics

Among the first to be involved in a center specifically set up to study statistics. Helped in training individuals of the Crop Reporting Service of the USDA and trained many people who started statistical programs at universities in the southern United States.

Daubechies, Ingrid (1954-) Belgian: Specialty: Math Applications, Pedagogy

Fenchel, Kate (1905-1983) German: Specialty: Algebra

From a poor home, she went to the University of Berlin supported by a friends father. She emigrated to Denmark after little success finding a position as a Jewish woman in Pre-WWII Germany. She moved with her family to Sweden in WWII and did not produce much research until 1962. She was never a very productive mathematician, however was a person of quality who was influential in Danish mathematics.

Flugge-Lotz, Irmgard (1903-1974) German: Specialty: Engineering Mechanics

She was a major contributor to the mathematical side of automatic control theory and aerodynamics. She started in Germany, went to France and the United States. She worked with fluid dynamics and was helpful to many people working for NASA who were pursuing their masters and doctorates.

Geiringer Von Mises, Hilda (1893-1973) Austrian: Specialty: Applied Math

Born in Austria, she moved to Berlin and left with the rise of the Nazis. She ended up working at Bryn Mawr and was instrumental in training young mathematicians. She faced difficulties in finding other work since she was a woman. She was also known for her interests in a wide variety of areas.

Germain, Sophie (1776-1831) France: Specialty: Number Theory

From a home that did not support academic pursuits for women, she lived in a home which took away her privileges and things when she tried to study math. France at this time was living in the ‘Reign of Terror’. Her mother supported her secretly. Much of her work was done under pseudonyms and few people including Lagrange and Gauss knew her true identity and skills.

Granville, Evenly Boyd (1924-) American: Specialty: Complex Analysis

This African American woman was one of the first two to ever receive doctorates in Mathematics in the US. Although she was sent to segregated schools as a youth, the quality of the staff helped shape her work ethic. She earned a MA in math and Physics in one year and had her doctorate at the age of 25. She faced the same issues of discrimination against women of this period, with the added problem of her race.

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Hayes, Ellen Amanda (1851-1930) American: Specialty: Applied Mathematics

Grew up in a household that valued education for both male and female children. Most of her career was spent at Wellesley College. She was strong willed to the point she was a controversial instructor and was not given professor emeritus status upon her retirement. She also became a socialist candidate for Secretary of State.

Hopper, Grace Brewster Murray (1906-1992) American: Specialty: Computer Science

She was from a family that saw equity in education for males and females. She served in the US navy and in private industry. She was quite influential in the first computers and is sometimes referred to as the ‘Mother of COBOL’.

Hypatia, (355?-415) Egyptian: Specialty: Geometry, Number Theory

One of the first known women mathematicians, she lived in an era where women were not known for their intellectual gifts. Her father gave her a thorough education in math and philosophy. She was known as a teacher, philosopher and orator. She wrote many commentaries that survived her, making her influence well documented. She had many famous pupils who became men of status and paid her much respect.

Janovskaja, Sofja Aleksandrovna (1896-1966) Russian/Polish: Specialty: History of Logic

Her background was largely unknown, but apparently she came from the Polish upper class. Her education was interrupted by the Bolshevik revolution but resumed once the dust settled. She dedicated her studies to mathematical logic and was exceptional at it. Her greatest contributions may have some from the sense of confidence she instilled in all soviet mathematicians, ensuring their place among the worlds elite.

Karp, Carol (1926-1972) American: Specialty: Mathematical Logic

Known primarily for helping develop infinitely logic, Karp spent much of her career at the University of Maryland. She generated symbols that represented variables, functions and relations. She valued the lives of her students and felt she should prioritize their well being, however her standards for student acceptable work were very high.

Kendall, Claribel (1889-1965) American: Specialty: Linear Geometry, Differential Geometry

Her whole career spent at the University of Colorado, she was slowly promoted through the ranks while male professors received promotions in a more expedient manner. She was not a leading researcher, but instead a leader in her community, especially her church.

Kochina, Pelageya Yakovlevna Polubarinova (1899-?) Russian: Specialty: Hydrodynamics

One of the most important scientists/mathematicians of Russia, she was fortunate to benefit from the Bolshevik revolution’s alteration to end of decimation towards women by barring them from University education. She worked much of her professional life alongside her husband, a dedicated Communist. Her work was primarily in hydrodynamics, including subsurface water movement.

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Kovalevskaia, Sofia Vasilevna (1850-1891)  Russian: Specialty: Analysis, Mechanics

From the upper class, her father liked mathematics and arranged for her to have a tutor. She fled the lack of University education for women common to the era by arranging a sham marriage and moving to Germany. She ran into difficulty obtaining permission to attend the University, so arranged for private tutoring from Karl Weierstrass. She prepared for her doctorate at Gottingen University and was the first woman to receive a doctorate in mathematics there. She returned to Russia to have a child and see her husband pass away. She found doors closed to her due to her sex and was finally offered a position as a professor in Stockholm. Once there, she became an integral member of the European mathematical community.

Kramer (Lassar), Edna Ernestine (1902-1984) American: Specialty: Complex Analysis, History of Math

Her interest in mathematics fueled by the passion of her high school teacher, she was highly interested in his theories about training teachers in integrating advanced topics  within other mathematical concepts and also having teachers learn method and content simultaneously. She and her husband, a high school teacher explored the world. She was an avid author, although at first she declined collaborative efforts.

Ladd-Franklin, Christine (1847-1930) American: Specialty: Symbolic Logic

Famous for symbolic logic, she authored a description of three requirements for any developer of a system of logic. She later authored a system of logic using the two symbols (copulae)  of a v and a v with a line above it. She was also known for her work in the psychology of colors and human response to them.

Litvinova, Elizaveta Fedorovna (1845-1919?) Russian: Specialty: Function Theory

Known along with Kovalevskaia as a preeminent female mathematicians in Russia in the late 1800’s, she tried the same method of pursuing higher education outside of Russia in that others did: by marriage. However, her husband refused to allow it and ultimately her marriage ended. She went to Switzerland and pursued her education until Tsarist Russia recalled all female students. She refused, obtaining her masters and doctorate. When she returned she could only obtain lower level positions. She did not research much but instead is known for her contributions to training educators of mathematics.

Lovelace, Augusta Ada (1815-1852) English: Specialty: Computing

Born of nobility, she never attended a university, tutors and self-study allowed her to progress quite far in her basic training. She married into nobility and through this met several preeminent mathematicians who became major influences in her studies. She met Charles Babbage, who was working on his Difference Engine and later the Analytical Engine. Lovelace became sick and while still working on her research essentially left her three children to be raised by her husband and others. Her work was not always attributed to her, as societal pressures of the time forced to use only her initials.

Macintyre, Sheila Scott (1910-1960) Scottish: Specialty: Analysis

Starting in a Ladies only college, she was the top mathematician and joint top student. She went on to the University of Edinborough and then Cambridge. She researched for a short time and then became a teacher. She married and followed her husband to his position during WWII. After the war, she researched in England until her husband moved to the United States. She and her husband both taught at the University of Cincinnati until her death.

Maddison, Ada Isabel (1869-1950) English: Specialty: Algebraic Geometry

Educated at the University of South Wales, Gorton, and Oxford, she also passed the examinations at Cambridge. She was not allowed to receive a degree, so she went to Bryn Mawr. She was awarded a bachelors degree by the University of London and then won a scholarship for study abroad and went to Germany. She returned to Bryn Mawr and was both a professor and assistant to the President, but ended up in primarily management roles, rather than mathematics.

Merrill, Helen Abbot (1864-1949) American: Specialty: Analysis

Formal schooling began at age 12 for her, and she became one of the first 20 women to hold a doctorate of mathematics in the United States. She attended Wellesley University and ultimately became an instructor there. She became a figure in national mathematical societies and traveled the world learning throughout her life.

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Morawetz, Cathleen Synge (1923-) Canadian: Specialty: Differential Equations

An odd twist of events led to this individuals area of specialty. She had been educated at several schools prior to earning her masters from MIT. She tried to find work and hearing little encouragement found a position editing a book on sonic shockwaves. She spent much of her career performing research in these areas, some of it funded by the military.

Neumann, Hanna (1914-1971) German: Specialty: Combinatorial group theory

She was a female Jewish mathematician in pre-WWII Germany, who ran into the Nazi influence and had it bar her progress. She was outspoken about her feelings towards the Nazi’s and through her efforts to protect Jewish lecturers she lost her job. She left after a period to go to England, married and then went to the US. She was a mother, researcher and played a positive role in her students lives. She ultimately ended up in Australia and worked with secondary school curriculum design.

Newson, Mary Frances Winston (1869-1959) American: Specialty: Differential Equations

She was the first American Woman to receive a doctorate from a European university. She was a home school student until college. After graduation, she attended Bryn Mawr for graduate school and accepted a scholarship to Gottingen where she studied for 3 years. She returned, became married and had three children. She was involved in a protest over academic freedom and moved universities but taught until her death.

Noether, Emmy (1882-1935) German: Specialty: Abstract Algebra

Raised in an upper middle class Jewish family, she qualified as a French/English teacher prior to developing an interest in Mathematics. When she started to attend courses, they were not open to women in general, but by permission only and for audit only. She later transferred to a school which admitted women and received her doctorate. She worked with David Hilbert at Gottingen University and traveled to Russia. After the Nazi’s came to power, she was denied a position and transferred to Bryn Mawr.

Peter, Rozsa (1905-1977) Hungarian: Specialty: Mathematical Logic

She was a major player in mathematical logic studies and partly because of it math logic is where it is today. In her early 30’s she was well know for her work on logic and edited texts in the area. She also worked in training teachers and cared greatly about advancing the skills of women entering scientific fields.

Rees, Mina (1902-1997) American: Specialty: Algebra, Applied Mathematics

Recognized early as a gifted child, she attended a publicly supported female only division of a high school/ college program in New York City. After her first year of college, they asked her to teach there. She declined, gaining a masters degree prior to returning. She taught, took a sabbatical for her doctorate and returned. She married and later joined the office of Naval Research. It was the beginning of a long service to our nation in military and non-military areas of math.

Robinson, Julia Bowman (1919-1985) American: Specialty: Mathematical Logic

A severe illness as a child may have influenced this woman’s contribution to mathematics. She spent 4 years either sick or in tutoring, ultimately becoming the only female in the higher mathematics classes at her high school. In college, she met her husband, a professor, who took her on long walks discussing mathematical theory. They married shortly after the outbreak of WWII. When she tried to have children, her heart gave her problems and her husband suggested she immerse herself in math research. She worked primarily on one of David Hilbert’s classic problems.

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Rudin, Mary Ellen (1924-) American: Specialty: topology

Her primary contribution to mathematics was in training other mathematicians. She was a leader among the new field of set-theoretic topology, lecturing to other mathematicians around the US. She also has been a leader of the American Mathematical Society and Assn. For Women in Mathematics.

Scott, Charlotte Angas (1858-1931) English: Specialty: Algebraic geometry

One of the most influential educators of mathematicians in American, she was on the original staff of Bryn Mawr  University. She started her education at Gorton College, then located a few miles from Cambridge. She did extremely well in the examinations at Cambridge, but since it gave no degrees to women, she was given an external degree by the University of London. While at Bryn Mawr she was a tireless worker on behalf of her students and the mathematics program. She also was part of the American Mathematical Society and held many leadership offices in other societies.

Sinclair, Mary Emily (1878-1955) American: Specialty: Calculus

Her father a mathematics professor, she grew up in a family that valued education. She taught and researched at the same time, taking breaks from each as was needed  to finish her doctorate. She never married, although she adopted two children, an unusual thing for that time.

Somerville, Mary Fairfax Greig (1780-1872) Scottish: Specialty: Celestial Mathematics

A child who did not learn well early, she was sent to a boarding school to begin her education. Her father disproved of her interest in mathematics. Much of what she learned she found in books and magazines and she pursued what interested her. She was one of the first in Scotland to recognize the importance of the advances French mathematicians were making. She was involved with some of the more advanced mathematicians of her day and she recognized the interrelationships between the sciences.

Sperry, Pauline (1885-1967) American: Specialty: Differential Geometry

Famous for her stand against a loyalty oath administered by the University of California, she took stands against many societal issues facing our nation. She was retired from her post rather than signing the oath, but the oath was struck down by the courts and she was given back pay and position later in life.

Stott, Alicia Boole (1860-1940) Irish: Specialty: Geometry

Her father was a professor of mathematics, although she barely knew him since he died when she was 4. Her mother was seldom home so she was raised by her older sisters. She found math late, at about 17. She is famous for her observations and theories about multidimensional solids.

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Taussky-Todd, Olga (1906-1995) Austrian/Hungarian: Specialty: Number Theory and Matrices

Raised in a nurturing home, she was recognized early for her mathematical gifts. Her father had her doing calculations in the vinegar factory. Her schooling included a stint a Gorton College near Cambridge, Bryn Mawr in the US and the University of London, where she met her husband. They traveled to the US teaching at Caltech as well as working for the National Bureau of Standards. She is well known for her work with many important mathematicians of her day and training future doctoral candidates.

Weiss, Mary Catherine Bishop (1930-1966) American: Specialty: Analysis

Her father a mathematician who died when she was quite young, her brother a college student in math in his junior year of high school, she became a mathematician as well. Her observations in her field were highly technical and still elude many modern mathematicians. She was an exceptional teacher, yet her contribution to the world of mathematics was cut short by her early death at the age of 36.

Wheeler, Anna Johnson Pell (1883-1966) American: Specialty: Functional Analysis

Coming from modest beginnings, she is arguable one of the most influential women mathematicians in the US. She studied with David Hilbert for her doctorate, but left it incomplete when she and Hilbert argued. She ultimately received her doctorate in the US, and taught at Bryn Mawr among other schools. She had a series of happy marriages, but outlived most of her husbands.

Young, Grace Chisholm (1868-1944) English: Specialty: Algebraic Geometry, analysis

The first woman to receive any doctorate in Germany, she was home schooled by her mother and a governess. She went to Girton College, took the Cambridge graduation exam and on a challenge took the Oxford exam where she was ranked first. She went to Gotteningen, received her doctorate and became a mother. She was widely educated, speaking 6 languages and completing everything for a medical degree except an internship.

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