person. To be in my list of greatest scientists, a scientist must have shown acts of kindness, or acts of badass-ness and also have done something to advance science. This is also based on my personal opinion so many of you readers may disagree completely with me. That's okay! This list is also probably biased on what I find important. It's also in no particular order- I don't think that scientist number 10 on this list is any more or less great than scientist number 1!
Kicking of the list comes the only scientist to win two Nobel Prizes in two different sciences, and the first woman to win a Nobel Prize... the incredible Professor Marie Curie.
In 1898, Curie, working alongside her husband-also Professor Curie, discovered the element Polonium. Also in 1898, the Curies discovered another element Radium. Apparently this wasn't enough for the Curie power couple who also publish papers proving that Radium destroys cancer cells. This makes Professor Curie the mother of radiotherapy, which countless cancer patients have benefited from.
In 1903, Professor Curie was the first woman in France to get a Doctorate, and shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with her husband for their work on Radium, becoming the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. Many scientists would be justified in calling it a day by this point- not the unstoppable Professor Curie. In 1906, she becomes the first female professor at the University of Paris - after losing her husband and becoming a single mother a month before. In 1910, she isolates Radium and in 1911 wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her work on Polonium and Radium. This time, the Nobel Prize is solely hers; at the time, she was the first person to win two Nobel Prizes. She still remains the only woman to win two Nobel Prizes and the only scientist to win two Nobel Prizes in two different disciplines.
What she did for the advancement for science and medicine already make her an unquestionable GSOAT. But what also cements her position on this list are her acts of charity and kindness. In WW1, she developed mobile radiography units and donated Radium from her own supplies for sterilizing infected tissues. Over 1 million soldiers near the front lines were treated by her radiography units- which she also worked on as a radiographer.
Incredibly, we are still not done! She became a member of the League of Nations' International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation and aided in scientific coordination, alongside Albert Einstein. Her death at 66 years old in 1934 of Aplastic Anaemia was a tragic loss. Unfortunately, safety requirements for radiation exposure did not exist in those days as the damaging impact of radiation was not yet known. She had walked around with test tubes of radioactive material in her pocket (fun fact: the outfit she wore in her lab was the outfit she had worn at her wedding) and had been unshielded from X-rays in her radiography units. Her lab-notes and cookbooks still remain sealed in lead lined boxes. Professor Curie's remains are next to her beloved husband at the Paris Pantheon; both remains are sealed in a lead-lined coffin.
This scientist is undoubtedly a GSOAT. I'm actually now regretting my choice to write about her first because I'm worried that the rest of the article is going to be a let-down. How can anyone top that?!
Well, the second GSOAT is … Rosalind Franklin!
I'm a geneticist - she has to be on the list! I won't write too much here because I've done a massive article on her and another article on the impact of her most famous discovery. Photograph 51 is the reason the DNA structure was discovered, and the reason why this is so important is that it gave so many valuable insights into how DNA actually works. This ultimately led to so many advancements in genetics. Dr Franklin also played a very valuable role in the discovery of the structure of Tobacco Mosaic Virus, which gave valuable insights in how viruses operate.
Dr Franklin also discovered key aspects in the chemistry and physics of carbon and coal- which aided in manufacture of wartime devices- such as gas masks. Ultimately, Dr Franklin was absolutely essential in the fields of genetics, virology and x-ray crystallography -a technique still used today.
In terms of who she was as a person, she was a total badass. Her mother recalled that after expressing scepticism on the existence of God, she remarked 'Well, anyway, how do you know He isn't She?'. She was also incredibly dedicated to her work. Dr Franklin continued to work during her cancer treatment- in my opinion, this is badass! She was diagnosed in 1956; she contributed to seven papers the same year - and a further six the next year. Like Marie Curie, her death may also have been caused by exposure to X-rays. Unlike Marie Curie ,she was only 37 when she died. It is not unreasonable to think that she could have made so many more advancements to science.
Coming up next is someone who changed the entire world view and is a lyric on arguably the best Queen song of all time!
(Galileo, GALILEO, Galileo, Galileo, Figaro magnificoooooo... But I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me...HE'S JUST A POOR BOY FROM A POOR FAMILY... sorry, couldn't resist.)
Other than being a important part of Bohemian Rhapsody, Galileo changed science. To begin with, in 1609, Galileo created one of the first telescopes ever. This telescope had a magnification of up to 30 times, and was used for many of his discoveries. After pointing the telescope at the moon, Galileo deduced that the uneven waning of the moon was caused by the effect of lunar mountains and craters. He discovered Jupiter's four largest moons; this led to some problems as the prevailing principles at the time said that all 'heavenly bodies' should be orbiting around the Earth. He then observed that Venus had a full set of phases - similar to the moon -i.e. waxing, waning. In 1610, he was then the first to observe Saturn and then in 1612, observed Neptune. He observed that the Milky Way was not a nebula but a multitude of stars. Galileo used his own observations to support and defend a theory called Heliocentrism - which suggested that the Earth orbited the Sun. This is in contrast to Geocentrism - which said that Sun orbited the Earth.
Unfortunately, Galileo's work showing that we are not the centre of the universe really pissed off the Catholic Church and he was ordered to present himself at Rome, where he was tried by the Roman Inquisition. (No one expects the Roman Inquisition!), and had to spend the rest of his life under house arrest. Allegedly, after being forced to recant his theory that the Earth moved around the Sun, he muttered 'And yet it moves'. Badass!
Galileo also devised a type of compass called a sector. He constructed the thermometer and a version of the microscope. Galileo conducted experiments with pendulums and sound frequency, being one of the first to understand how the pitch of the sound relates to frequency. Galileo was also the first to think about relativity ; his principle was central to Newton's AND Albert Einstein's work. Stephen Hawking stated that Galileo more responsible for modern science than anyone else, whilst Albert Einstein called him the father of modern science. It's hard to determine what Galileo was like as a person- but despite going blind in 1638 and developing a hernia and insomnia he carried on working. I think that certainly makes him dedicated, and if the story of him mouthing off to the Inquisition is true, he was certainly a badass. Combined with what he did for science, he is certainly a GSOAT worthy of the name.
Coming up next on the list is the infamous Albert Einstein.
You can't have a list on greatest scientists without mentioning him! Dr Einstein is best known for the Theory of Relativity; this is actually two theories - special relativity, which applies to phenomena in the absence of gravity, and general, which explains how gravitation works. These two theories completely changed physics and astronomy , leading to concepts that included 4 dimensional spacetime, time dilation and elementary particles. This ultimately led to the nuclear age, and also led to predictions on the existence of neutron stars, black holes and gravitational waves. Dr Einstein also devised Brownian motion - the random motion of particles in a liquid or a gas. This had implications in science.
He is responsible for the equation E=mc^2, which describes the relationship between mass and energy. This had massive implications in nuclear and particle physics. If this wasn't enough, he was responsible for the concept of stimulated emission- this led to the laser. He is also responsible for the concept of Photons - particles of light. He was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for his services to Theoretical Physics. Einstein CHANGED Physics and deserves to be noted as a GSOAT.
Outside of his work in science, Einstein was a brilliant, although complex man. He was one of the few prominent German Thinkers to sign the October 1914 'Manifesto of the Ninety -Three' a document justifying Germany's belligerence in WW1. He travelled extensively and carried out many lectures. From 1922 to 1932, he was am member of the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation of the League of Nations. A Jewish German National, he and his wife were forced to emigrate in 1933 and delivered a wildly-cheered speech on academic freedom at the Royal Albert Hall. Back in Germany, his works were being burnt and he was classed as an enemy of the German regime, with a $5,000 bounty on his head. Einstein was a pacifist and considered war as a disease. However, he did join a group letter to President Roosevelt recommending the US engage in nuclear weapon research - due to the concern that German Scientists might be the first to build an atomic bomb. Einstein later told Linus Pauling that he regretted his involvement. He considered racism as America's 'worse disease', and was a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) in Princeton. He managed to get a case against alleged foreign agent W.E.B. Du Bois, a civil rights activist, dropped when he offered to be a character witness. As well as changing science, he paid a pivotal role in the advancement of civil rights. He is most definitely a GSOAT.
Coming up last (but no means least) on this list is the father of evolution... Charles Darwin!
Darwin is best known for his theories that all species of life descended from a common ancestor - a process we now know as evolution, and that evolution resulted from a process he named as natural selection. These theories are arguably his most important contributions to science, and truly changed the field of biology for the better. Without evolution, we would not have the fields of molecular biology or genetics. We may not even have palaeontology, and developments in medicine would not have been possible either. For example, we would not be able to track how viruses develop or how bacteria develop antibiotic resistance without first understanding evolution.
Darwin also contributed to geology; when in Chile, he saw mussel beds stranded above high tide and high in the Andes, he saw seashells and fossil trees that had grown on a sand beach. This led him to suggest that oceanic islands sank as land rose, with coral reefs forming atolls. In 1842, he wrote about the structure and distribution of Coral Reefs and had written three books Geology by 1846. After studying barnacles, Darwin discovered important information on the evolution of distinct sexes. He also investigated whether eggs and seeds could travel across seawater to spread species. His most famous publication 'On the Origin of Species' was finally published in 1859. The word 'Evolution' was first used in his 1871 publication 'The Descent of Man'. Predictably, Darwin's theory did cause some controversy, with some church authorities deriding it as heretical.
Darwin himself had a questioning view of religion. He expressed criticism about the historical accuracy of the Bible and and considered religion as a survival strategy. However, he was also reluctant to give up the idea of God completely, although he was troubled by the problem of evil, remained a leading member in the parish work of his church, and was close friends with the vicar of his community.
Darwin wasn't a well man and was often plagued with illness. He also lost two of his children and worried that his children had inherited weakness due to inbreeding - his wife Emma was his first cousin. Darwin was known to be a devoted parent and the death of his daughter Annie was devastating. However, he continued to work and when laid up in bed in 1862, he filled his room full of experiments to track the movement of climbing plants.
Darwin's letters are full of honesty and self deprecation, showing surprise at his achievements as well as frustration. I personally love his letter where he bemoans how ill and stupid he feels today. I use this quote when I'm grumpy and failing in science. It reminds me that even some of the greatest scientists have bad days. It is for this honesty and his mental struggles, combined with his work that I class him as a GSOAT.
Of course, there are so many more scientists that also deserve the title of GSOAT- I have barely touched the surface of the amazing, incredible women and men who changed science for the better, and were also brilliant people in their own right. So I will most likely be doing a part 2 to this article! Just to reiterate, the order that they are mentioned in is by no means a reflection on their greatness in relation to each other- i.e. I don't think that Charles Darwin is any less or more great than Marie Curie.
Anyway, I hope this article was interesting and informative! I'm really interested on your views and whether you agree or disagree on whether these scientists were indeed GSOATs.
That's all from me for now- Thank you for taking the time to read!
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