First Wave, Second Wave, Third Wave: Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

Countess Lovelace imagined a world of artificial intelligence a century before modern computers were made. Madame Germaine, a notable mathematician, was barred from entering university. Dr. Meitner, a Jewish physicist, discovered nuclear fission during the second world war. Dr. McGill, who had polio as a teenager and was wheelchair bound, worked as an aeronautical engineer and designed the Hurricane airplanes. Admiral Hopper coined the phrase computer bug by finding an actual bug in a computer. The admiral also designed the first computer programming language making it easier for future generations to interact with computers. This first wave of women scientists and engineers should be known by every student in STEM, but unfortunately their names are being slowly forgotten. Over the last few years, there has been a push to attract more women in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Despite all these efforts, the percentage of women has been constant or in some cases, such as computer science, has decreased. In this work, we will tell the stories of the first wave of the notable women in STEM, and the effects they have had on our careers. We conclude with observations of the present and a call to action for increasing the visibility of women in STEM.