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Scientific Biographies

Science is a human pursuit. Meet some of the people who have contributed to the history of chemistry, chemical engineering, and the life sciences.
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Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier

This French chemist introduced the world to hydrogen and oxygen, terms that were at the heart of one of the hottest chemical debates of the 1700s.

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Detail of a French Philatelic First Day Cover commemorating the 2nd centenary of the birth of Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier, ca. 1943.
Science History Institute
Illustration of Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier used on a French postage stamp

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painting of a women in a lab
Elisabeth Bakker *
ca. 1600s
black and white portrait of a woman
Mary Letitia Caldwell
1890 - 1972
black and white photo of George Washington Carver
George Washington Carver
ca. 1864 - 1943
Undated portrait of mycologist Vera Charles
Vera Katherine Charles
1877 - 1954
black and white of a women holding up a herbarium
Mary Agnes Chase
1869 - 1963
Autographed etching of Fritz Haber, 1922
Fritz Haber
1868 - 1934
Yeast Art portrait of Fanny Angelina Hesse
Fanny Angelina Hesse
1850 - 1934
Portrait of Justus von Liebig, after 1845.
Justus von Liebig
1803 - 1873
Carl von Linde
1842 - 1934
b/w photo of a women seated in a dress
Mary Engle Pennington
1872 - 1952
portrait of Ellen Richards in a cap and gown
Ellen H. Swallow Richards
1842 - 1911
color photo of a man with a baby on his shoulders
Calvin Ross Sperling
1957 - 1995
Portrait of Jokichi Takamine
Jokichi Takamine
1854 - 1922
Evangelina Villegas in a lab, ca. 1970.
Evangelina Villegas Moreno
1924(25) - 2017
Harvey Washington Wiley
1844 - 1930

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