History, they say, is written by the victors – and for a long time, the victors were men. This means the history of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is often skewed towards male contributions, with vital work by women relegated to the footnotes.
There are exceptions, of course. Marie Curie, for instance, is a household name. But how about Dorothea Dix, Katherine Johnson or Tu YouYou? These women have made massive contributions to our understanding of the natural world and the human body – yet outside the academy, they don't have the stature of Einstein or even Professor Brian Cox.
But it's not just the Hall of Fame that needs working on. For centuries, women have been underrepresented in STEM courses and jobs in all parts of the world.
Things are beginning to change. Scientific organisations increasingly highlight the pivotal work done by women in STEM. Meanwhile, events like International Women's Day – held on 8 March – shine a bright light on their achievements.
Here at Stump Cross Caverns, we're passionate about science – a passion reflected in our stargazing events,
home education days ,
teaching materials and more. So, we thought we'd help signal-boost the achievements of four women who are changing the world in 2025.
1. Jennifer Doudna
Jennifer Doudna's CV is filled with high-profile teaching positions and medals that recognise her work. Her achievement, however, can be summed up in a sentence: she's developed of way of editing genes to prevent otherwise intractable diseases.
These "genetic scissors", known as "CRISP-Cas9", have epoch-shaking potential. DNA can be snipped and edited in order to tackle diseases – and to stop them from developing at all.
The possibilities for medicine are immense.
It's a remarkable achievement that won Doudna and her collaborator Emmanuelle Charpentier the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Doudna, however, hasn't lost the art of modesty. In a 2024 lecture at Berkeley University, she said: "For students, in particular, I wanted to point out that in my career, the story of CRISPR – really the work that we've done over many years here at Berkeley – has really been a combination of opportunity, serendipity and collaboration."
She currently works as a professor at Berkeley, teaching chemistry and molecular cell biology, and as an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
2. Mae Jemison
Mae Jemison will always be known for her world record. She was the first African-American woman to travel into space, taking part in NASA's STS-47 mission in 1992.
For most people, that would be a nice enough laurel to rest on. But Jemison's career demonstrates a passion and commitment to STEM education that goes far beyond her record-breaking achievement.
Since leaving NASA in 1993, Jemison has founded a technology research company and a non-profit educational foundation. She was also the principal of the 100 Year Starship project – a study into the possibility of interstellar space travel.
In 2018, she collaborated on the Science Matters initiative. This aimed to get young children interested in agricultural sciences.
On top of that, she's an active public speaker on a mission – to promote science and technology. Oh, and she appeared on Star Trek: The Next Generation. What a life!
3. Fabiola Gianotti
Like Mae Jemison, Fabiola Gianotto is a record-breaker.
The Italian experimental particle physicist is the first female director-general of CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research). Not only that, but she's also the first director-general to be appointed for two full five-year terms.
CERN hit the mainstream headlines in 2012 when scientists discovered a new particle called the Higgs Boson.
The Higgs Boson is a tiny particle with huge ramifications for physics. It's the fundamental particle associated with the Higgs field. This field gives mass to other building blocks of the universe, such as electrons and quarks.
Before becoming director-general of CERN, Gianotti worked closely on the ATLAS collaboration. This is one of two key experiments that brought the Higgs boson to light.
As you would expect from somebody so closely involved in this epoch-defining discovery, Gianotti has been awarded more medals and honorary degrees than you can shake a Large Hadron Collider at.
She did, however, have a brush with notoriety when she presented the discovery of the Higgs Boson using the Comic Sans typeface. Some felt this undercut the momentous nature of the findings. But even that can't undercut her incredible contributions to her field.
4. Frances Arnold
Sometimes, scientists become renowned for working on theories, experiments and projects that other people started. It's all part of what American chemical engineer Frances Arnold calls the "evolutionary" nature of science. "We build," she says, "by adding to and recombining what is already there."
In her case, however, she had the bright idea and the ingenuity and persistence to see it through. The idea? Using directed evolution – the steering of proteins or nucleic acids to achieve a specific goal – to create new enzymes.
Evolution, she famously remarked, is "the best bioengineer in history". That's why she applied the principles of natural selection to her work in the lab.
The enzymes she created and helped create have led to new biofuels, pharmaceuticals and other chemicals – all through sustainable processes.
This breakthrough led to her sharing the Nobel Prize for Chemistry with two other biochemists in 2018.
She also made an appearance as herself on American sitcom The Big Bang Theory . She joked that this was the greatest accolade of her life!
Final thoughts
STEM is changing all the time – and it's all thanks to the incredible patience and ingenuity of scientists. These four women have helped to change our world. Who knows where the scientific community will take it next?
Know a little scientist-in-the-making? Why not introduce them to one of our
educational online activities ? They can learn about how
rocks are formed ,
how light works and much more. It's great fun for ages seven to 11.
