Amazon Category:  Biography Publisher: Avisson Press Inc. ISBN-10:  1888105704 Type: Non-Fiction Pages: 143 Copyright: 2005 ISBN-13: 9781888105704 Chapters on the life and work of eight women scientists The eight women in this book, four of whom were Nobel Prize winners, are Gerty Cori, Josephine Baker, Rita Levi-Montalcini, Rosalyn Yalow, Dorothy Hodgkin, Mary Leakey, Rosalind Franklin, and Sylvia Earle. Rosalind Franklin helped discover the structure of DNA, but was not given credit for her contribution.  Excerpt Stephen Jay Gould, a well-known zoologist, called Mary Leakey "the unsung hero" of the search for human origins. Twice she had discovered the earliest humans . . . She is credited with finding the oldest evidence of the upright mode of walking.

from Booklist
Each chapter provides biograpical information, including insight into the scientist's personality, as well as a discussion of the subject's career and accomplishments. Several of these accounts explain research work for which the scientist earned a Nobel Prize. Perhaps the most vivid account is of Josephine Baker, who became a doctor in 1900, was appointed the first head of New York City's Department of Child Hygiene, and implemented policies that dramatically lowered the city's infant mortality rate. Though the stories vary, the qualities of diligence, intelligence, and excellence are common threads. Back matter is sketchy, with no notes(even for quotations) but includes a bibliography and an index with only proper names. Given the lack of information on women scientists beyond those whose names are well known, this is a useful addition to many library collections.