Ahhotep I

Ahhotep

Ahhotep I was an Egyptian princess and later queen.  It is believed that she lead armies into battle against Egypt's enemies.  She was buried with a golden fly necklace which was a military honor. She was also buried with a golden battle ax. 

Sybil Ludington

Sybil Luddington

Listen, my children, and you shall hear

Of the midnight ride of Sybil Ludington.

Sybil Ludington was a teenager during the American Revolutionary war.  Her father was the leader of a local militia.  One night, she rode 40 miles and until dawn to warn local militia of incoming British troops.  Sounds similar to Paul Revere right? except he was 40 and she was 16.  He rode with another man, she rode alone on her horse named Star.  Paul and his buddy were captured by the British a few miles into their ride, Sybil completed her mission. She also carried a big stick to ward off attackers and to pound on doors.  It was also said to be raining that night.  

Julia Gillard

Julia Gillard

Julia Gillard is best known for becoming the first female Prime Minister of Australia. She is also known worldwide for her famous "Misogyny Speech" in parliament in 2012.  As a result of this speech the definition of misogyny was been expanded on to include prejudice against women.

Abigail Adams

Remember the Ladies

Abigail Adams was more than just the wife of John Adams. The two spent many years of their marriage apart and they often wrote to each other. It is from these letters that we get the famous "remember the ladies" quote. "If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation."

The History Chick Podcast:

http://thehistorychicks.com/episode-five-abigail-adams-audio/

Cokie Roberts: Founding Mothers

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0024CF0GQ/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 

Rosalind Franklin

Rosalind Franklin

Rosalind Franklin is most know for discovering the double helix structure of DNA.  She used x-ray crystallography to photograph the structure.  Her lab partners Watson and Crick stole her research and claimed a Noble Prize for her work.  After leaving the laboratory that she shared with Watson and Crick she then studied RNA viruses.  Her parter Aaron Klug got the Noble prize for chemistry for their work.  She was not named on either prizes because she had already died of ovarian cancer at the age of 37.

Science Brunch Podcast:
https://soundcloud.com/science-brunch/episode-3-rosalind-franklin

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Happy Birthday Ruth Bader Ginsburg! 

The notorious Supreme Court Justice turns 85 today.  She has become famous for her dissents and her fight for equal rights not only for women, but men as well.  Even though she graduated at the top of her class in law school she often faced discrimination.  I highly recommend reading her book, In My Own Words. 

Stuff Mom Never Told You Podcast:

https://www.stuffmomnevertoldyou.com/podcasts/the-notorious-rbg.htm

RBG Documentary Trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biIRlcQqmOc

Malala Yousafsai

Malala Yousafzai

Malala Yousafzai is most famous for her fight for the right of girls all over the world to get an education.  When she was a girl in the Swat Valley of Pakistan, she watched the Taliban slowly creep into her town.  She wrote secretly for a BBC blog about life under Taliban rule.  Around her girl's schools were being forced to closed or bombed.  She spoke up for the right for girls to receive an education.  The Taliban shot her on her way home from school.  But that did not stop her.  After recovering in a hospital in the U.K., she still fights for the rights of girls around the world to get an education.  She even started attending university herself this year. She also won the Nobel Peace Prize for her work, the youngest recipient of the award. I was very fortunate to see her speak at DePauw University last year.

I recommend reading her book, I Am Malala.  There is also a documentary called He Named me Malala which covers the same material but with wonderful animations and clips of Malala's family and even her meeting the Queen of England.