The 22nd of December is celebrated as National Mathematics Day on the birth anniversary of Srinivasa Ramanujan. He is one of the most celebrated mathematicians in the world, having claimed that Goddess Namagiri revealed the knowledge of mathematics to him in his sleep. It is said that if you want a centum in mathematics, you can pray to this goddess, ironically, the stereotype that women cannot do mathematics runs deep in many countries, especially India.
This argument is backed by the statement that higher levels are dominated by men. There are many reasons for that. First, culturally, women have seldom been encouraged to take up STEM subjects. They have been rejected not because of issues of merit but on the premise that they aren’t competent enough to pursue serious subjects like mathematics. Secondly, many science institutes in India had their doors shut to female students till the later part of the 20th century.
It is important to recognise women who, despite adversity, have made their mark and broken down glass ceilings. It would be just to start with Shakuntala Devi, who is remembered as a "human computer." Born in 1929, she is India’s first female mathematician who could perform lengthy calculations in her mind faster than a human computer. Raman Parimala is another remarkable woman mathematician who was born in 1948 and is described as a "supreme and powerful algebraist."
Dr. Mangala Narlikar pursued her PhD in mathematics in the 1970s and has done impressive research on pure mathematics despite being a mother of three. She has openly spoken against women giving up their careers for marriage.
Dr. Neena Gupta, 35, solved a 70-year-old mathematics puzzle called the Zariski cancellation problem, becoming the youngest person to receive the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in 2019. Recently, three Indian women among 60 were recognised as Australia’s "Superstars of STEM"
Bhaskara II, a famous Indian mathematician of the 12th century, dedicated his treatise on mathematics to his daughter Lilavati, who must have been a very bright girl. It remains a highly regarded textbook in traditional mathematics. We, as a society, need to promote, encourage, and celebrate women in STEM.
Content : Meha
Graphics : Jasleen Kaur
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