Woman - Who Art Thou?

March is National Women's History Month. We've all heard the adage, Behind every good man is a great woman. True or not, there are - and have been - many remarkable women who have made significant contributions to history, culture, science, politics, and all other areas of work and play.

See if you can identify the following great women:

1. When people asked me if I was going to write my life story, I would reply, "[My life] is such an uneventful, simple little story. I was born in Warsaw of a family of teachers. I married Pierre and had two children. I have done my work in France." I graduated from school at 15, and worked as a governess until I had saved enough money to attend the Sorbonne. After I earned a degree in mathematics, I married a scientist and had a daughter. I became interested in physics and decided to pursue a master's degree, basing my research on the source of the mysterious rays given off by Uranium. I ultimately died from the very thing I studied. Who am I?


2. I was born in New York and also spent some time in California. I was raised as a Quaker, and became a musician and singer. My focus throughout my life has been on nonviolent protest as a means of ending war, war-related industries and national budgets, and discrimination. I was parodied in Al Capp's "Li'l Abner" comic strip as "Joanie Phonie" in 1967, and my tour of Viet Nam resulted in the album, "Where are you my son?" Who Am I?


3. I was born in Mainland China in 1947. In 1952 my family fled the Communist mainland and moved to Hong Kong. My new British school required I have an English name, so my father, who spoke no English, chose Flossie, after a recent hurricane. I went to UCLA and studied molecular biology. I became an authority on viruses, and am the co-discoverer of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Who am I?
   

The complete stories of these and many other remarkable women, are available online free this month from Gale, the vendor from whom we get our online journal indexes. Additional biographies of notable men and women can be found in Gale's Biography Resource Center on the library's Database Page. Ask library staff for more information about how to use this valuable resource both in the library and at home (with your library card).