Are Women Treated Equally With Men

Are women treated fairly and equally with men in the field of science? Throughout the last century, women have had to deal with biases against them. Are women still dealing with this issue? The answer is yes. However, it is not as big of an issue today as it had been in the past. There are many women in history that did not get recognized for their hard work and discovery. You might not be familiar with Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Esther Lederberg, and Chien-Shiung Wu. These are women who helped with advancements in science. Jocelyn Bell Burnell is a scientist who discovered pulsars. She made the discovery in 1967 while a graduate at Cambridge University as a radio astronomer. She started working with Anthony Hewish and her job was to assist in …show more content…
She was best known for discovering a virus that infected bacteria. She called this virus lambda bacteriophage and discovered it in 1951 while she studied at the University of Wisconsin. She and her husband, Joshua Lederberg produced a way that they could easily transfer bacteria from one petri dish to another. They called his process replica plating. In 1958, Joshua received the Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine because of his and Esther's work. In Joshua's acceptance speech, he mentioned that he enjoyed the company of his colleagues, including his wife. He did not however, mention the important role she had in their discoveries. Esther was not presented with any recognition for her …show more content…
None of these very talented women got the recognition they truly deserved. Jocelyn Bell Burnell discovered pulsars and still fights for women's rights in science. Esther Lederberg discovered lambda phage and also was able to come up with a way to move bacteria from one petri dish to another. Chien-Shiung Wu helped make the discovery of atomic bombs and conducted many experiments on radiation detection and uranium enrichment. They are more recognized now, but during their lives, most people did not know who they were or what they did. Hopefully, as time goes on, women will no longer have to deal with discrimination against them in their advancement towards science. Women should be able to enter into any career path they want and be able to know that people will fully accept them. Science is not just for men, it is for everyone. All persons who work in this field and contribute meaningfully should be recognized