Women of Science: Breaking Barriers from Alchemy to Zoology
ThursdayS October 15 to December 03 10:00 am to 12 noon
ZOOM Session
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Presenter: Dr. Myriam Nafte PhD.
Course Overview: Join me on a journey through time as we explore the stories of pioneers, rebels and visionaries who defied convention to push the frontiers of human knowledge. From the alchemy labs of the ancient world to the cutting-edge research of modern genetics, this lecture series uncovers the hidden, forgotten and trailblazing women who transformed medicine, physics, astronomy, botany and engineering with their quiet but revolutionary defiance.
October 15: Alchemy and the Cosmos: The Women Who Sparked Science - Alchemy, astronomy and early medicine weren’t just the domains of male mystics and philosophers – women were there too, shaping the earliest scientific ideas. This lecture uncovers how science evolved in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Greece through the forgotten experiments and lost manuscripts of women like Maria the Alchemist and Hypatia of Alexandria. Long overshadowed by history, their contributions reveal a hidden world of ancient knowledge waiting to be rediscovered.
October 22: Midwives, Medics and Monasteries - Medicine and botany in medieval Europe were not just fields of discovery, they were dangerous battlegrounds. For women like Hildegard of Bingen, Trotula of Salerno, and the fearless Jane Sharp, practicing their trades was walking a tightrope twisted with innovation and persecution. How did they defy the odds, challenge the establishment, and escape the flames of history?
October 29: Renaissance Rebellion: “I Just Met a Girl Named Maria” - The Renaissance ignited a scientific revolution, drawing fresh eyes to the stars, the elements and the human body. But while men took centre stage, women worked the shadows, collaborating, experimenting, and carving out spaces of their own. This lecture uncovers the hidden legacies of three remarkable women, all sharing the name ‘Maria’.
November 5: Daring to Know! - The Enlightenment era brought a surge of scientific classification, leading to the categorization of plants, animals and human anatomy. But while men labeled and organized, women were out in the field, dissecting, documenting and defying expectations. From botanical gardens to anatomy labs, they dared to step into spaces dominated by the male gaze, reshaping how we see life in the wild.
November 12: Bones, Stars, and Dinosaurs: Women at the Edge - The 19th century marked an expansion of scientific study, with paleontology, medicine, and evolutionary biology becoming dominant fields. Women made contributions despite being excluded from formal institutions. This lecture covers what it took for the star-struck astronomers and earth-bound fossil hunters to claim their place in history.
November 19: Making and Breaking: Women With Degrees - With the door to higher education barely open, women pushed their way in, breaking through in medicine, engineering, and physics. There were prizes to win, papers to publish, and conferences to command. But in a world where credentials mattered and credibility was questioned, how did Dr. Blackwell, Dr. Erxleben and Dr. Calais prove they belonged?
November 26: The Physics of Perseverance - The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw women break into physics, chemistry, and genetics often working in laboratories where they were uncredited, unpaid, or unseen. Yet, against the glare of expectation and the weight of marriage, childrearing, and widowhood, they lit up their fields with discoveries that reshaped science. This lecture uncovers the brilliance behind the breakthroughs.
December 3: Cracking Codes and Crystals - Some discoveries changed the world just not for the women who made them. In this final lecture, we uncover the scientists whose breakthroughs were ignored, dismissed, or outright stolen, while their male counterparts took the credit and the big prizes. From DNA to nuclear fission, we reveal the women who shaped the physical sciences and were subsequently written out of history.
Committee Contact and Chair: Judy McCormick
Dr. Myriam Nafte PhD. As a forensic anthropologist, Dr. Myriam Nafte is an active advisor and consultant for criminal casework across North America. She received a Specialized Honours BA in Medical Anthropology from York University, a B.Ed. degree in Science from Brock University and completed an MA and PhD. In Physical Anthropology [Skeletal Biology] at McMaster University.
Currently Dr. Nafte is an instructor at McMaster University where she teaches upper-level courses of Global Health, Infectious Disease and Narratives of Health and Illness.
Dr. Nafte is the author of numerous articles and books including Flesh and Bone; An Introduction to Forensic Anthropology, Crime and Measurement; The Skin of Murder Victims [Editor], and the forthcoming anthology Trophies and Talismans: The Traffic of Human Remains.
