Berlin: Lise Meitner Blog Post



We have learned a lot about Lise Meitner here in Germany.  According to the professors she was born in Austria in 1978.  She graduated in physics at the University of Austria.  She was not allowed a real scientific lab at the university because she was a woman so she worked in a woodshop.  She was very intelligent and was able to explain nuclear fission both mathematically and physically.  Because of her discoveries they wanted her to work on the Manhattan project but ethically she did not want any part in discovering how to create a nuclear bomb.  She was the first female professor in all of Germany.  My reaction to her is that I can tell she is very smart and someone who cares about humanity.  Although she was constantly discovering new things that could hurt or help the world she decided to do everything she could to help the world instead.  

Her contribution is so important because she was someone who was the minority in several ways being Jewish and a woman.  She was scientifically minded and very smart however, she also was religious and believed in God.  She traveled all throughout the world Germany, Austria, England, and the United States spreading her knowledge and discovering as much as she could about physics.  She was a renowned scientist that should have won several noble prizes.  She also has an element named after her! She contributed so much to society because of the things she discovered but also the example she set that although we have the ability to create things it isn't always the best for humanity.  

I believe Lise Meitner has not been commemorated well.  She has contributed so much to society included in discovering nuclear fission.  Although she does have a statue in the heart of Germany this statue is pretty small.  She should have one Nobel Prizes when she was alive so many different times however, she was constantly undermined for men.  She discovered so much and the statue she was given is so small in comparison to everything she discovered.  She should be a well known named throughout our schools and children should be learning about her.  

Comments

  1. Meg KiehlJune 14, 2024 at 7:44 AM

    Elease, I like how you pointed out some of the obstacles that Lise Meitner had to overcome in her field. The fact that she wasn’t allowed to work in a scientific lab because she is a woman seems absurd today. I think some of the obstacles she faced still exist today, but definitely not to the same extent. She had to work harder as a woman to achieve the same things a man could achieve and yet she could not receive the same honor for that work. It’s sad that she never received the Nobel Prize for her work.

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