5 Female Mathematicians of Note

Summary: The Smithsonian Blog has posted short biographies of five brilliant women mathematicians that everyone should know.

1. Hypatia (ca. 350 or 370 - 415 or 416)
One of the first female mathematicians. Last known member of the Library of Alexandria. Followed her father, Theon, to study math and astronomy.

2. Sophie Germain (1776 - 1831)
Taught herself Latin and Greek to learn math and Geometry. First woman to win a prize from the French Academy of Sciences for her work on a theory of elasticity.

3. Ada Lovelace (1815 - 1852)
Worked with Charles Babbage on his Analytical Engine which is considered one of the first computers. She wrote the world's first computer program.

4. Sofia Kovalevskaya (1850 - 1891)
Moved to Germany to be more involved in the sciences and was privately tutored. Received a doctorate for writing on partial differential equations, Abelian integrals, and Saturn's rings. First woman (in the region around Stockholm) to receive full professorship.

5. Emmy Noather (1882 - 1935)
Developed many mathematical foundations used in Einstein's general theory of relativity. Received a PhD for a dissertation on a branch of abstract algebra.

Additional video:
Ada Lovelace

Scott Carpenter passes away at 88

Summary: Scott Carpenter, Mercury 7 astronaut, has recently passed away at the age of 88.
He was a part of NASA's first group of astronauts and was the second American to orbit the earth in Aurora 7. His death leaves John Glenn as the last surviving member of the Mercury team.
One of the cool things about him was that after his capsule landed 288 miles off target, the Navy found him floating in the Caribbean, laying on his life-raft with his feet propped up like he was on vacation. When not exploring space, he joined the Navy's SeaLab II program and spent 30 days under the ocean and continued to be invested in oceanography up to his death.



BBC News

The Women Who Mapped the Universe

Summary: Pickering's Harem is what they were know collectively as; only a few are remembered individually. These are the women that helped to catalog the universe and organized all the astrophotography done at the Harvard observatory in the early days. Pickering used his human computers for largely clerical duties: reducing the photographs, comparing the stars to other already classified stars, or cataloging the pictures themselves. Despite this they did perform the important work that helped the universe be classified.

One of the few individuals to be remembered is Annie Jump Cannon. She is responsible for the system of classifying stars that the International Astronomical Union still uses today. However, she did not actually get any recognition as the system was dubbed the Harvard system of spectral classification.




Smithsonian

Dark Matter article

This month's (May) Discover magazine has a fantastic article on the history of Dark Matter, what we know know, and what is planned in the future. It's a great read for anyone who is interested.

Physics and Literature

Summary: Although physics and literature are not often mixed, there are places where these topics overlap. One physicist at CERN, JJ Gomez, has been overlapping these two interests.
He has previously written a story on his experience working at CERN and a book concerning the issues of potential energy sources. He is considering writing a new book focusing on nuclear energy. Right now, however, he is working on a book aimed at young adults. He hopes to introduce physics topics without all the complex facts. I look forward to seeing what he comes up with. Since he is a fan of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, I have high hopes for his book.

His previous works:
Book of short stories: La agonía de las libélulas (Agony of the dragonflies)
Materia Extraña
El ecologista nuclear (The Nuclear Environmentalist, now published in English)



CERN Courier: http://cerncourier.com/cws/article/cern/52360

Astronomer Sir Patrick Moore dies

Sadly, Sir Patrick Moore has passed away. He is most known for his TV show and his his books published on his research. He was 89 and passed away peacefully in his home.

BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20657939

NASA wishes Neil Armstrong the best of luck in recovery

A statement from the NASA Administrator regarding Neil Armstrong's recovery from cardiac bypass surgery:

"NASA wishes Neil Armstrong the very best for a quick recovery from surgery," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. "Neil's pioneering spirit will surely serve him well in this challenging time and the entire NASA Family is holding the Armstrong family in our thoughts and prayers. I know countless well-wishers around the world join us in sending get well wishes to this true American hero."

https://www.facebook.com/NASA/posts/10151122628926772

Astronomer Bernard Lovell dies

Quick summary:

Sir Bernard Lovell, the pioneering astronomer, physicist and founder of Jodrell 
Bank Observatory, dies aged 98.

BBC News:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19164236 

The passing of a hero

Sally Ride, the first American woman in space and one of my heroes, has passed 
away earlier today from pancreatic cancer. She was 61. 

BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18963939 

NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/people/features/ride.html