Notable Women in Mathematics A Biographical Dictionary

Subjects:

• Science » Mathematics/Physics/Chemistry
• Women's Studies » Women's Studies (General)
• Women's Studies » Women in Business & Labor

Reviews:

• [T]his dictionary introduces us to the mathematical achievements of many less-famous women, and the biographies of modern lives are less remote from the experience of modern people. For public and academic libraries.
  —Library Journal
• Recommended for community college students.
  —Choice
• There never seems to be enough information about women in a school library, and this book certainly is going to help fill that gap. Librarians and math instructors will want to make sure that their top math students take a look at this book.
  —The Book Report
• [T]his volume provides information on women not treated in other sources. High-school students in particular should like these readable, motivational profiles, which are filled with information about each subject's childhood, education, family life, and obstacles overcome, as well as professional achievements.
  —Booklist/Reference Books Bulletin
• [This] is a valuable resource for students and mathematics educators alike. It provides valuable insight into the variety of ways in which women--especially contemporary women in the United States--have created a niche for themselves in the world of mathematics.
  —Association for Women in Mathematics Newsletter
• High school girls today still need encouragement from individuals, but they also have this excellent collection of biographies to inspire them to pursue mathematical careers.
  —Feminist Collection
• [A] valuable reference addition...for its emphasis on successful contemporary female mathematicians....[it] should be considered by secondary, post-secondary, and larger public libraries.
  —Reference & User Services Quarterly
• [A] valuable book for and about women in mathematics at a level suitable for high school and early college students that celebrate the diversity present in the community of women mathematicians....The essays are a delight to read. Each gives a very human and encompassing picture of the whole woman--as mathematician, teacher, mother, wife, or partner....I would recommend Notable Women in Mathematics to high school teachers of mathematics, high school counselors, high school students interested in mathematics, and also to college professors and students of mathematics looking for a connection to the diverse community of women mathematicians. This book is a wonderful source of role models for young women who may be attracted to mathematics but who may at the same time be repelled by the sterotypical image of the lone, slightly mad, probably male, certainly eccentric mathematician.
  —The Mathematical Association of America
• At a time when female role models are desperately needed in mathematics and the sciences, this collection is a great mentoring tool for mathematics....The biographies are well written and interesting especially about the way the individuals became involved in mathematics, and inspirational in the way some had to overcome obstacles in their career paths. This resource should be in every school library and general reference collection.
  —ARBA
• The biographies themselves are non-technical and in addition to recounting the life story of the subject, stress a few themes, such as how collaboration and teamwork is important, how the subject became interested in mathematics, their non-math interests, and their feelings associated with events in their lives. Overall, the biographical dictionary succeeds in capturing a diverse cross-section of women mathematicians and conveying a sense of what their lives have been like as women in the field. Recommended for high school and undergraduate collections.
  —E-Streams
• Written in an easy-to-read style by numerous contributors, each biography is about three to four pages long and includes a photograph or sketch, educational data, work information, and personal information....This collection is an interesting assortment of women's stories, past and present. It would be an excellent resource for any high school library. Teenagers could learn much about dedication and determination from these profiles.
  —The Mathematics Teacher
• This highly readable account, designed for the general public, is to be recommended particularly for secondary school students.
  —Zentralblatt Math
• This text could be used as supplementary reading for students and as a resource for educators who strive to include contemporary women mathematicians in their instruction.
  —Infotech

Table of Contents:

• Introduction
• Maria Agnesi
• Andrea Bertozzi
• Lenore Blum
• Sylvia Bozeman
• Marjorie Lee Browne
• Leone Burton
• Fan Chung
• Ingrid Daubeschies
• Emilie du Chatelet
• Etta Falconer
• Joan Feigenbaum
• Elizabeth Fennema
• Herta Taussig Freitag
• Sophie Germain
• Evelyn Boyd Granville
• Mary Gray
• Gloria Hewitt
• Grace Hopper
• Rhonda Hughes
• Joan Hutchinson
• Hypatia
• Nancy Kopell
• Sofya Kovalevskaya
• Christine Ladd-Franklin
• Anneli Lax
• Gilah Leder
• Emma Lehmer
• Ada Lovelace
• Vivian Malone-Mayes
• Dusa McDuff
• Marie-Louise Michelsohn
• Cathleen Morawetz
• Emmy Noether
• Karen Parshall
• Bernadette Perrin-Riou
• Harriet Pollatsek
• Cheryl Praeger
• Mina Rees
• Ida Rhodes
• Julia Robinson
• Judith Roitman
• Mary Ellen Rudin
• Mary Beth Ruskai
• Cora Sadosky
• Alice Schafer
• Doris Schattschneider
• Charlotte Agnas Scott
• Marjorie Senechal
• Lesley Sibner
• Mary Somerville
• Pauline Sperry
• Alicia Boole Stott
• Olga Taussky-Todd
• Jean Taylor
• Chuu-Lian Terng
• Karen Uhlenbeck
• Marion Walter
• Sylvia Wiegand
• Grace Chisholm Young
• Appendix I: Mathematicians by Date of Birth
• Appendix II: Countries of Employment
• Index