February 11: International Day of Girls and Women in Science | Post by @zmoreno | #club75

This is a relatively new commemoration and celebration. It was proclaimed by the UN in 2015, with the aim of including all women in science, who for many years have been censored, ignored and even totally disappeared from history.

Culturally, many times girls are attributed to more "humanistic" studies; however, there is not a great visualization that women can also be part of science. For example, many of the faces seen in textbooks are men; however, there have also been discoveries or inventions by women that have revolutionized history. Why is this not talked about?

This day seeks to teach girls with the same fervor as boys the interest in mathematics, physics, computer science, among others; to break the limitation of learning that still exists in many countries and to give to understand that all human beings, equally, are capable of studying this area of life and develop a career around it. One of the main ways to do this is precisely to promote women of the present and the past who have made a difference in the world through their scientific research.

_{Done in Canva by me, Isabella Moreno.}

The following are some renowned women in the field of science:

• Hedy Lamarr: Austrian inventor who discovered a way to widen long-distance communications, formulating the most prehistoric form of the internet and making its future invention possible.
• Marie Curie: Polish scientist and chemist who discovered the existence of two chemical elements: radium and polonium, and is credited with initiating radioactivity. She is also the only person to have won two Nobel Prizes in different areas: chemistry and physics.
• Rachel Carson: American biologist who, through her book "Silent Spring", laid the foundations for environmental conservation, especially in the marine area.
• Dorothy Hodgkin: British chemist who discovered the structure of protein crystals through X-rays, which earned her the Nobel Prize in chemistry.
• Alice Ball: American chemist who achieved an effective treatment for Leprosy before the appearance of antibiotics, saving millions of lives.
• Rosalind Franklin: British chemist who was responsible for expanding knowledge about the DNA and RNA molecule, looking for ways to treat viruses and genetic diseases.

And many, many more. The list of women who have evolved science is endless; from astronauts to chemists who have made possible the invention of medicines or methods to take care of human health. Therefore, it is very important that all girls around the world are given the opportunity to choose their vocation freely. By informing and raising awareness of the role of women in science, it is possible that many girls will become passionate about them.

However, it is worth noting that another key role of women in science is to inform women of the past and present, through autobiographical books such as Rachel Ignotofsky's Women of Science and many more. This works to make these great figures of history visible.

_{The book of Rachel Ignotofsky about women in science. Source.}