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Lise Meitner (1878~1968)

She was a great researcher, almost contemporaneous with Madame Curie, and was nominated 48 times for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry/Physics. 

In her childhood in Austria, education for females was only allowed until the age of 14, after which they were expected to prepare for marriage, so despite her remarkable intelligence, she had to temporarily halt her studies. She later continued her education on her own and, when the law allowed, became Vienna's second female Doctor. However, due to the gender barrier, she eventually had to move to the University of Berlin in Germany for her research, but still faced difficulties for the same reason. During her time at the University of Berlin, there wasn't even a women's restroom, and her position as a research assistant was not highly regarded by the professors. Fortunately, she had a companion who respected and appreciated her, inviting her to collaborate on research and offering her an unpaid adjunct position.

When World War I broke out, like Madame Curie, Meitner drove an X-ray vehicle on the front lines in France to assist soldiers. Meanwhile, Curie served as an X-ray nurse in field hospitals, helping Austrian front-line soldiers. Before World War II and the rise of the Nazis, Meitner could no longer stay in Germany. She eventually fled to Switzerland and continued to remotely participate in nuclear reaction research. In 1939, she successfully explained the theoretical principles of nuclear fission, which became a crucial foundation for the later development of the atomic bomb. She was invited to the United States to join the Manhattan Project, but due to her steadfast pacifism and belief that science should not be used for military purposes, she declined. She remained committed to opposing nuclear weapons until her last moments.

Lise Meitner, because of her gender and Jewish identity, despite her extraordinary scientific contributions, remains buried in the currents of history...

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"Life need not be easy, what's important is that it not be empty"

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