Harriet Brooks e a tabela periódica: um caso para valorizar a participação feminina na história da ciência

Nathalia Miwa Arasaki Menezes  Freitas; José Otavio Baldinato

doi:10.53727/rbhc.v16i1.807

Authors

Nathalia Miwa Arasaki Menezes Freitas Universidade de São Paulo https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9671-8281
José Otavio Baldinato Instituto Federal de São Paulo https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7910-8097

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53727/rbhc.v16i1.807

Keywords:

History of Science, Women in Science, Periodic Table, Harriet Brooks

Abstract

Fostering to highlight female participation in the history of science, this paper presents a case study on the Canadian physicist Harriet Brooks (1876-1933). Working under the guidance of Ernest Rutherford at McGill University, she investigated an emanation from the element radium which behaved like a heavy gas. Her study “The new gas from radium” (1901) would have contributed to understanding radioactive decay connected phenomena and would also relate with the process of discovering the element radon. Beyond the scientific affairs, Brooks’ case allows one to evince gender issues associated with the scientific career, showing up obstacles to the continuity of women's professional activity.

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