Science

Forces of Nature: The Women who Changed Science

Forces of Nature: The Women who Changed Science

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-05-28 10:51:07
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Anna Reser
  • ISBN：0711248974
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Summary

From the ancient world to the present women have been critical to the progress of science， yet their importance is overlooked， their stories lost， distorted， or actively suppressed。 Forces of Nature sets the record straight and charts the fascinating history of women’s discoveries in science。
 
In the ancient and medieval world， women served as royal physicians and nurses， taught mathematics， studied the stars， and practiced midwifery。 As natural philosophers， physicists， anatomists， and botanists， they were central to the great intellectual flourishing of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment。 More recently women have been crucially involved in the Manhattan Project， pioneering space missions and much more。 Despite their record of illustrious achievements， even today very few women win Nobel Prizes in science。
 
In this thoroughly researched， authoritative work， you will discover how women have navigated a male-dominated scientific culture – showing themselves to be pioneers and trailblazers， often without any recognition at all。 Included in the book are the stories of:
Hypatia of Alexandria， one of the earliest recorded female mathematicians
Maria Cunitz who corrected errors in Kepler’s work
Emmy Noether who discovered fundamental laws of physics
Vera Rubin one of the most influential astronomers of the twentieth century
Jocelyn Bell Burnell who helped discover pulsars

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Reviews

Justine ，

Thanks to NetGalley and Quarto for providing an ARC！

Mairead ，

Fascinating but more analysis needed

Jordan LaMagna-Meneghetti ，

First， I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review。 This book is a historical account of the way women have contributed to science throughout history despite the roadblocks that have been put in their way。 I really enjoyed this book and the way it presented information。 They author says from the beginning that until fairly recently， you had to really drudge through information to find women associated with science because many times， First， I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review。 This book is a historical account of the way women have contributed to science throughout history despite the roadblocks that have been put in their way。 I really enjoyed this book and the way it presented information。 They author says from the beginning that until fairly recently， you had to really drudge through information to find women associated with science because many times， when there were women involve， their work was diminished or they just flat out weren't given any credit。 I think this book did a good job of discussing the different intersections of the lives of different women， including race， class， ethnicity， etc。 It didn't deify these women; it made sure to showcase the full picture， including the different priviledges many of this women had。 The main drawback from this book is that it is mainly a Western account of women in science。 There are a few mentions of women from China， India， and Japan， but other than that， I believe they were all North American or European。 There were no mentions of women scientist from Africa， Australia， or South America。 While this could be due to lack of information， I think that is something that the author should have mentioned。 I recommend this book to people everywhere who are interested in learning more about women you may have never heard of that have contributed to the knowledge we have access to today。 。。。more

Purple Lorikeet ，

Historically， the contributions of women to science have been poorly documented and it's really mainly in recent history that they've been given much more than a mention。 So to have a book about women in science is pretty amazing。 It's also maddening and sad that what we know of women in science could even begin to fill only just one volume。 And yet， the information is so scant as to having to piece together the puzzle of where women would have played their roles。 This volume discusses women in Historically， the contributions of women to science have been poorly documented and it's really mainly in recent history that they've been given much more than a mention。 So to have a book about women in science is pretty amazing。 It's also maddening and sad that what we know of women in science could even begin to fill only just one volume。 And yet， the information is so scant as to having to piece together the puzzle of where women would have played their roles。 This volume discusses women in the scientific world from ancient times to the contemporary。 Early history is conjecture to a certain degree， based on what we know of the periods of history。 This takes into account early female roles in history that have carried on through the ages such as healing and dealing with childbirth。 As we reach the 17th-18th centuries， there are more written records of the contributions although much of the acknowledgement of these efforts comes through a male counterpart， be it a mentor， employer or spouse。 Women's roles in science started to become more of a separate entity as we came into the 19th and 20th centuries and in modern times women get a lot more credit than at any time in earlier history。 The book is divided into time periods and each era focuses on notable women of the time。 There are images of several of these women， in drawings and photograph and some women even get their own pages with mini-biographies。 While I like these pages， I was disappointed that most of the information included was repeated from the main text。 I would have liked there to be more reason to read these side articles。 Although it was pointed out to me that perhaps this was done for those who might skim the book instead of reading it through。 Aside from that note， I will say I was quite pleased with the book and learned quite a bit about women who have played roles that I've not heard about。 I see this book as an introduction and jumping point to find more information about these women。 I also liked the way the authors had no problem with pointing out some of the negatives of the women involved。 So if a woman was remarkable for the science but was racist， it was noted。 Privilege was the main factor as to how far a woman might go in making progress in scientific achievement and it was usually through a connection with a mentor， employer， or spouse that much was accomplished。 Although the text is a bit dry at times， it is a lovely book and I give it a solid four stars overall。 I would like to thank Netgalley and White Lion for sharing an advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair review。 。。。more

S。L。 Berry ，

Reser and McNeill's Forces of Nature is a well-written thoughtful and soulful analysis of some of the mostly unsung women who changed science by developing ground-breaking theories and tests in many areas including astronomy， physics， chemistry， paleontology， and biology， many of which are still in use today or which fueled subsequent discoveries。 The layout of the book is excellent with its many photographs of the women。 Forces of Nature would be a good advanced placement high school， first yea Reser and McNeill's Forces of Nature is a well-written thoughtful and soulful analysis of some of the mostly unsung women who changed science by developing ground-breaking theories and tests in many areas including astronomy， physics， chemistry， paleontology， and biology， many of which are still in use today or which fueled subsequent discoveries。 The layout of the book is excellent with its many photographs of the women。 Forces of Nature would be a good advanced placement high school， first year college history of science text book。 Copy provided by NetGalley 。。。more

Steve ，

I enjoyed this book。 I found the discussion of the involvement of women in science thorough and illuminating。 I also liked the organization of the book。 The art in the book is great。 But I also had a couple of quibbles with the book。 The writing style is more formal than I usually enjoy。 I also found the book weak on discussing women in biology and medicine in the 20th century。 Overall though， this is a book well worth reading and is a good starting place to learn more about specific accomplishm I enjoyed this book。 I found the discussion of the involvement of women in science thorough and illuminating。 I also liked the organization of the book。 The art in the book is great。 But I also had a couple of quibbles with the book。 The writing style is more formal than I usually enjoy。 I also found the book weak on discussing women in biology and medicine in the 20th century。 Overall though， this is a book well worth reading and is a good starting place to learn more about specific accomplishments， such as those available in specific biographies。 Thank you to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group – White Lion for the advance reader copy。 。。。more

Tilly ，

4 StarsI was so excited to read Forces of Nature and it didn't let me down。 It is a beautiful hardback with a brilliant layout that was informative as well as aesthetically pleasing with images of the women who changed science throughout history。 I really enjoyed the breadth of this book。 Its starts with the first woman known to be involved in science in 2285 BCE and ends in the 21st Century。 There is so much time to cover and yet the author Leila McNeill covers it really well。 The book is prett 4 StarsI was so excited to read Forces of Nature and it didn't let me down。 It is a beautiful hardback with a brilliant layout that was informative as well as aesthetically pleasing with images of the women who changed science throughout history。 I really enjoyed the breadth of this book。 Its starts with the first woman known to be involved in science in 2285 BCE and ends in the 21st Century。 There is so much time to cover and yet the author Leila McNeill covers it really well。 The book is pretty seamless as it moves through history but also through different sectors of science。 The book is filled with interesting research and I can tell the author would have had to spend a lot of time getting this information。 I particularly enjoyed the sections on astronomy， botany， nursing and space exploration。 I liked how each section was done in date order but then also had pages to highlight specific women that contributed alot to science。 I often felt so immersed into the stories of these women that I wanted to know more！ This book is very well written and held my attention from start to finish。 It was a nice book to dip in and out of。 I wouldn't say it was a book to binge as there is just so much information to take in。 You do not have to be knowledgeable about science to enjoy this book。 Obviously it would help to have an interest in it， however anyone that is interested in how women have played a part in major scientific events and projects throughout history will find this book enjoyable。 I couldn't give 5 stars as I felt it was very focused on the USA with a side order of Europe and very few stories from elsewhere。 It would have been nice to have more information from other countries however I can imagine finding out that information may be quite difficult。I really recommend this book and hope more people read it and learn how vital women in science have been， when patriarchy has tried to hide them。 Please note that I was gifted this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Nicola ，

A fabulously illuminating book on the plight of women throughout history to make their stamps on science。 I was delighted to read much further back into history than I thought would be included in this book， covering such early times as the Middle Ages and onwards。 It was split into lovely succinct sections， covering the history of the time in regards to how women were treated and seen during the period， their roles in science as well as the difficulties and struggles they often faced and overca A fabulously illuminating book on the plight of women throughout history to make their stamps on science。 I was delighted to read much further back into history than I thought would be included in this book， covering such early times as the Middle Ages and onwards。 It was split into lovely succinct sections， covering the history of the time in regards to how women were treated and seen during the period， their roles in science as well as the difficulties and struggles they often faced and overcame。 The chapters included examples of women throughout history and most I’d never even heard of， despite thinking I knew a fair few women in various scientific fields throughout history but evidently I didn’t！ From women in astronomy， to botany and anatomy， it covered a broad set of fields and was very interesting to read。 It was great to learn some more names and read this book that shed some light on some historical figures I hadn’t encountered before。 Within also was great use of pictures and illustrations to further the understanding of the text， making it more of an enjoyable experience to read and a very enlightening one too。With thanks to the author and publishers for an advanced copy of this book in return for my honest thoughts and review。 。。。more

Alexandra ，

I got this book through NetGalley。I'm a bit conflicted by this book。 On the one hand， it's a pretty great introduction to women in science - and the fact that women have ALWAYS been "in science"， they've just been obscured （deliberately or not） on a personal level or an institutional one; by which I mean， "science" has been constructed as a discipline in order to leave the ladies out （eg midwifery isn't really medicine）。 Recovering the presence of women is always good。 I LOVE that Marie Curie is I got this book through NetGalley。I'm a bit conflicted by this book。 On the one hand， it's a pretty great introduction to women in science - and the fact that women have ALWAYS been "in science"， they've just been obscured （deliberately or not） on a personal level or an institutional one; by which I mean， "science" has been constructed as a discipline in order to leave the ladies out （eg midwifery isn't really medicine）。 Recovering the presence of women is always good。 I LOVE that Marie Curie isn't mentioned until the last chapter。 Seriously: the authors make this choice an explicit one， explaining that she gets used as the exemplar and that's not useful （and also people ignore a whole bunch of facts about her， too）。 I liked that the authors aimed to go back to ancient women， despite the overwhelming lack of evidence （because patriarchy AND because time）; they make a good case for ways in which ancient women would have been involved in scientific endeavour。 On the other hand。。。 I wasn't always sure whether the authors were picking women as examples， or if they thought they were being exhaustive。 If the latter， then they didn't succeed - and surely they weren't trying for that in a book intended for the general reading public - but I would have felt more comfortable if they had been clearer about their decision-making paradigms。 There were some sweeping statements about "women" and their access to education/lack thereof。 Very occasionally there were comments about how class also interacted with gender - but I felt there was a serious lack of this latter point。 Class had a HUGE impact on access to time， let alone equipment; this intersection should have been made much more obvious。 As well， other discussions about women's involvement in science has pointed out that gentlemen-scientists， for instance， often had female servants assisting; that's not discussed here。 Occasionally， the authors do not walk the line I think they intend to。 For instance， when Western Europe experiences a craze for natural history and botany， the latter in particular is seen as appropriate for women to be involved in， for various reasons。 The authors point out that it was thought women were closer to nature， and therefore had an affinity for botany。。。 and then seem to suggest that women really were better at botany？ I was a bit confused about what the authors thought they were doing here。 This is， too， an overwhelmingly European （and eventually American， largely still of European descent） book。 Not exclusively - there is mention of women in ancient Egypt （of course; that's basically European in the way it's often discussed！）， and women medical practitioners in ancient China。 There's a Japanese scientist in the 20th century who did awesome things regarding ocean currents and nuclear fallout， a woman of mixed Irish/Mexican ancestry who was an archaeologist， and a few others。 I would have liked to see an acknowledgement that evidence is overwhelming white， because colonialism （in Europe and America） and because。。。 lack of access， or something？ for Asia。 Africa， South America， Australia。。。 I got whiplash when the discussion leapt from Algoanice， living in probably the first century BCE， to Hildegard， who was born in 1098 CE。 As a way of enlarging your understanding of women's place in science over time， this is a fine place to start， as long as you remember the caveats about class and race。 。。。more

Aleksandra ，

{ARC Review}“Forces of Nature” presents an incredibly comprehensive history of women who have changed the world of science。 From the ancient times of Enheduanna of Mesopotamia and Hypatia of Alexandria， to the revolutionary discoveries of modern female astronomers who push the boundaries of the known universe – the book guides you through this rich tapestry of remarkable women and their scientific achievements。 The authors Anna Reser and Leila McNeill venture beneath the surface of all the gaps {ARC Review}“Forces of Nature” presents an incredibly comprehensive history of women who have changed the world of science。 From the ancient times of Enheduanna of Mesopotamia and Hypatia of Alexandria， to the revolutionary discoveries of modern female astronomers who push the boundaries of the known universe – the book guides you through this rich tapestry of remarkable women and their scientific achievements。 The authors Anna Reser and Leila McNeill venture beneath the surface of all the gaps one encounters when studying the history of women and unveil their forgotten， omitted， or even actively supressed stories。 I found the book incredibly informative， eye-opening， reassuring and empowering。 It demonstrates  how the patriarchal society has marginalized， silenced， and often ridiculed female scientists for centuries。 Although they were called witches， accused of impropriety， denied formal education and access to male-dominated institutions， women have always persisted。 Often working in the shadows and pushed to the background， many of them became the trailblazers in such fields like medicine， astronomy， botany， and more。 Modern science would not be where it is now if it wasn’t for all the remarkable female scientists and this book explains why。 I definitely learnt a lot from “Forces of Nature”！ The language is very accessible and it certainly doesn’t require any prior knowledge of science itself。 Personally， I enjoyed reading about female botanists， archaeologists and psychologists the most。 The book is not only an interesting and thought-provoking read for any enthusiast of science， history， or simply amazing women who change the world， but also a treasure trove of information for students and researchers。 It approaches the subject from intersectional point of view and touches upon the issues of colonialism， slavery， or segregation。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Forces of Nature: The Women who Changed Science

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Forces of Nature: The Women who Changed Science&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Forces of Nature: The Women who Changed Science&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0