It wasn’t long ago that science and science fiction were thought to be primarily male subjects of interest. Thankfully the times are a-changing, as Bob Dylan so famously put it. But it’s important to understand that the changing times aren’t a case of more females suddenly becoming interested in science and S.T.E.M. careers. Rather, it’s that the media is finally acknowledging the capabilities and interests that females have always had but have been culturally discouraged from pursuing. This list celebrates 10 fan-favorite fictional females in science; and more importantly, celebrates the fact that American media is catching up with reality.
Despite being a woman of deep faith, Scully was the ultimate skeptic. A medical doctor by profession, and an expert with an autopsy knife, Scully’s training led her to be precision-focused, level-headed, and pragmatic. One can imagine how she must have drawn from these traits in order to show the kind of restraint she did in the face of some of her partner, Fox Mulder’s, supernatural-bent theories. No matter the situation, Scully could reduce everything to a simple scientific observation. And despite the audience’s draw to Mulder’s other-worldly leanings, Scully was so thorough in her own explanations and convictions that she earned and sustained our respect.
Defiant as a child, Murph’s stubbornness stayed with her into adulthood, and it’s a good thing for, well, all of humanity. Her early love of science was inspired by her father, and it’s her drive that kept her going all the years her dad was gone from planet Earth. Science remained her rock, and not only led to her salvaging the Earth for generations to come, but also to salvaging her long estranged-relationship with the father she’d felt abandoned her. Kudos to Murph for her smarts and relentless determination.
The ultimate over-achiever, Carter was the best astrophysicist in the Stargate Universe, and a pilot in the US Defense Force. A theoretical researcher in the area of quantum mechanics, her quick analytical skills proved to be an invaluable asset to the SG-1 team. But what won her over with fans was the fact that she was a regular person who happened to also have an unabashed enthusiasm for science and discovery; the type who played well with others and could also exterminate a giant ball of fire in the sky.
Sweet-natured Fred was a physics student at UCLA before she was tricked by her professor and exiled to the demon dimension Pylea. Upon being discovered and rescued by vampire-with-a-soul, Angel, Fred returned to L.A. and began working at Angel Investigations, and later became head of Wolfram & Hart’s Science Division. Fred’s contributions were unique in that her strengths were rooted in earthly science, but applied in an environment rife with the supernatural and other-worldly phenomena. Her knowledge of physics and mathematics made her an excellent asset when researching and developing defeat strategies, and her ingenuity and resourcefulness also allowed her to create several constructs and contraptions that helped her adapt to stronger and more powerful enemies. Sadly, what ended up happening to Fred is something we can’t talk about without busting out a Costco-sized box of Kleenex. Ah, who are we kidding, there aren’t enough tissues in the world—or in that of any other-worldly dimension, either.
Shuri is a young female scientist who, despite being the little sister of a literal king and superhero, never once lets anyone relegate her to the background. She’s a genius when it comes to technology. But what’s more, she has a deep love for her native homeland of Wakanda, and a great desire to help keep it safe. She also has an unmatched sense of humor, which goes a long way when you’re trying to save a nation from baddies. One might argue that without her devotion, support, and ingenuity, things may not have turned out as they did for Wakanda.
Happy is a mechanical and engineering prodigy with an Eidetic memory. Her application of mechanical engineering to scientific principles helped to get Team Scorpion out of many a dire situation, and, oh yeah, save the world a few times while at it. On a personality front, Happy is a guarded soul who comes armed with an arsenal of sarcasm that often bleeds into big laughs. For viewers, that is; not for poor behaviorist Toby, whose heart she captured despite his best efforts to keep it from happening. (Spoiler alert: eventually they do find their, um, Happy-ness.)
Chief Communications Officer Nyota Uhura was an expert in linguistics, cryptography, and philology – disciplines which call upon mathematics, computer science, engineering, and high-level thinking with pattern recognition. Not only that, but her name comes from the Swahili word uhuru, meaning freedom, something that her trailblazing character was the epitome of when it came to race and gender and media depictions of women in science.
English-born Jemma is an expert biochemist. One of the youngest members of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s research division, she’s an intelligent, focused, and curious woman who doesn’t apologize for it. Hungry for success, she proved herself worthy and was appointed Special Advisor to the Director in Science and Technology (S.A.D.I.S.T.) Despite having been initially recruited to Coulson’s Team along with her partner and husband, Leo, she was able to stand apart and prove her own strengths.
Amy is a Harvard graduate who went on to receive a Ph.D in neurobiology. She makes this list for not only being a science genius, but because she’d be able to hold her own in a battle of smarts against any one of the four male scientists that make up her husband and his three friends. Amy, with her sometimes sardonic wit and often self-deprecating humor, quickly became a fan favorite after her introduction in the season three finale. Perhaps part of her lasting appeal is in how she simultaneously rides the fine line between being the poster child for everything nerdily unpopular, and something that can only be defined as geek-cool.
Go-Go Tomago is an industrial design and mechanical engineering student at the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology. A consummate inventor, her mag-lev discs are at once both a product of her thorough knowledge of magnetic-levitation technology, and her own advanced weaponry skill. An adrenaline junkie, she’s tough, smart, and fast to the extreme. She’s also extremely loyal. She’s a problem solver; a warrior who can take care of herself, but who’s also driven to help take care of others.
