Presented below, and organized by alphabetical order, are forty-two scientists who had no children.
AGNESI, Maria Gaetana
Maria Gaetana Agnesi (1718-1799) was an Italian mathematician and the first woman to write a mathematics handbook.
ANNING, Mary
Mary Anning (1799-1847) was an English fossil collector and paleontologist.
CANNON, Annie Jump
Annie Jump Cannon (1863-1941) was an American astronomer whose cataloging work was instrumental in the development of contemporary stellar classification.
CHAWLA, Kalpana
Kalpana Chawla (1962-2003) was an American astronaut and mechanical engineer who was the first woman of Indian origin to go to space.
DALY, Marie
Marie Maynard Daly (1921-2003) was an American biochemist whose research showed the relationship between high cholesterol and clogged arteries.
ELION, Gertrude
Gertrude B. Elion (1918-1999) was an American biochemist and pharmacologist, who shared the 1988 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine with George H. Hitchings and Sir James Black for their use of innovative methods of rational drug design for the development of new drugs.
EVANS, Alice
Alice C. Evans (1881-1975) was an American microbiologist. As a researcher at the US Department of Agriculture, she investigated bacteriology in milk and cheese.
FLÜGGE-LOTZ, Irmgard
Irmgard Flügge-Lotz (1903-1974) was a German-American mathematician and aerospace engineer who was a pioneer in the development of the theory of discontinuous automatic control.
FRANKLIN, Rosalind
Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958) was a British chemist and X-ray crystallographer whose work was central to the understanding of the molecular structures of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (ribonucleic acid).
GERMAIN, Sophie
Sophie Germain (1776-1831) was a French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher.
GLEASON, Kate
Kate Gleason (1865-1933) was an American mechanical engineer and businesswoman.
GLEDITSCH, Ellen
Ellen Gleditsch (1879-1968) was a Norwegian radiochemist who established the half-life of radium and helped demonstrate the existence of isotopes.
HENRY, Beulah
Beulah Louise Henry (1887-1973) was an American inventor who was given the nickname “Lady Edison” for her many inventions and was known as ”America’s leading feminine inventor.”
HERSCHEL, Caroline
Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) was a German astronomer who discovered several comets, including the periodic comet 35P/Herschel–Rigollet, which was named after her.
HICKS, Beatrice
Beatrice Hicks (1919-1979) was an American engineer and the co-founder and first president of the Society of Women Engineers.
HINTON, Jane
Jane Hinton (1919–2003) was a pioneer in the study of bacterial antibiotic resistance.
HOPPER, Grace
Grace Hopper (1906-1992) was an American pioneering computer scientist, mathematician, and US Navy rear admiral.
Hypatia
Hypatia of Alexandria (c. 350-415 AD) was a philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician of Antiquity.
KWOLEK, Stephanie
Stephanie Louise Kwolek (1923-2014) was a Polish-American chemist known for inventing Kevlar.
LAVOISIER, Marie-Anne
Marie-Anne Lavoisier (1758-1836) was a French chemist who assisted her husband, the chemist Antoine Lavoisier, in his scientific work.
LEAVITT, Henrietta
Henrietta Swan Leavitt (1868-1921) was an American astronomer who discovered Leavitt’s law: the relation between the luminosity and the period of Cepheid variables.
LEPAUTE, Nicole-Reine
Nicole-Reine Lepaute (1723-1788) was a French astronomer and mathematician who, along with Alexis Clairaut and Joseph Lalande, predicted the return of Halley’s Comet.
LEVI-MONTALCINI, Rita
Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909-2012) was an Italian scientist who worked in neurobiology and was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine, jointly with colleague Stanley Cohen, for the discovery of nerve growth factor.
LYELL, Mary
Mary Horner Lyell (1808-1873) was a British conchologist and geologist. She was married to the notable geologist Charles Lyell and assisted him in his scientific work.
MCCLINTOCK, Barbara
Barbara McClintock (1902-1992) was an American scientist and cytogeneticist who was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine.
MEITNER, Lise
Lise Meitner (1878-1968) was an Austrian-Swedish physicist who discovered nuclear fission.
MENTEN, Maud
Maud Menten (1879-1960) was a Canadian physician and chemist who made significant contributions to enzyme kinetics and histochemistry.
MEXÍA, Ynés
Ynés Mexía (1870-1938) was a Mexican-American botanist who accumulated over 150,000 plant specimens and discovered a new genus of Asteraceae, named Mexianthus in her honor.
MITCHELL, Maria
Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) was an American astronomer who discovered a comet that became known as “Miss Mitchell’s Comet.”
NOETHER, Emmy
Emmy Noether (1882-1935) was a German mathematician who made many important contributions to abstract algebra, including the discovery of Noether’s First and Second Theorem.
PARSONS, Helen
Helen Parsons (1886-1977) was an American biochemist and nutritionist known for her early work in vitamin B.
PENNINGTON, Mary Engle
Mary Engle Pennington (1872-1952) was an American bacteriological chemist and refrigeration engineer.
PEREY, Marguerite
Marguerite Perey (1909-1975) was a French physicist who discovered the element francium.
REDDICK, Mary
Mary Logan Reddick (1914-1966) was an American neuroembryologist.
RESNIK, Judith
Judith Resnik (1949-1986) was an American engineer and astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.
RICHARDS, Ellen
Ellen Swallow Richards (1842-1911) was an American chemist and a pioneer in sanitary engineering.
RIDE, Sally
Sally Ride (1951-2012) was an American physicist and astronaut who became the first American woman to fly in space.
RONA, Elizabeth
Elizabeth Rona (1890-1981) was a Hungarian nuclear chemist, known for her work with radioactive isotopes. to nuclear chemistry.
ROSS, Mary
Mary G. Ross (1908-2008) was a Native American aerospace engineer who worked on the renowned and highly secretive Skunk Works project at Lockheed Corporation.
STEARNER, Phyllis
S. Phyllis Stearner (1919-1997) was a researcher in the field of radiation biology and an advocate for scientists with disabilities.
STEVENS, Nettie
Nettie Stevens (1861-1912) was an American geneticist who discovered the X and Y chromosomes.
TERIAN, Alenoush
Alenoush Terian (1921-2011) was an Iranian-Armenian astronomer and physicist nicknamed the “Mother of Modern Iranian Astronomy.”
WANG, Zhenyi
WANG Zhenyi (1768-1797) was a Chinese scientist from the Qing dynasty who is remembered for her contributions to astronomy and mathematics.
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