50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars

Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by gmt2027 on Thursday November 30, 2017 @04:25AM (#15814480)

Except, Hewish did not initially accept Bell's results. He called it interference, claimed it was man made and not worth further attention. There were meetings to which she was not invited and it was a struggle to get him to accept their significance.

Edit: Also comparing a Doctoral student who "helped build the telescope" to a cleaner is rather unfair. Francis Crick was a PhD student when they worked out the structure of DNA.

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by melling on Thursday November 30, 2017 @05:15AM (#15814695)

There was an overlooked woman on that too:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosalind_Franklin

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by gmt2027 on Thursday November 30, 2017 @06:09AM (#15814904)

The prize was awarded in 1962, 4 years after she died of ovarian cancer. The Nobel is not awarded posthumously.

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by vanderZwan on Thursday November 30, 2017 @08:23AM (#15815477)

I understand why they do that, since it's supposed to be an encouragement. But there are two aspects of the Nobel prize: reputation and prize money.

If they would change the rules to make exceptions for shared discoveries, it won't dilute the reputation boost for the scientists in question in the slightest, and if they give the money to the surviving winners that problem is solved too.

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by melling on Thursday November 30, 2017 @08:29AM (#15815526)

Yes, I know that it’s not awarded posthumously.

My understanding is that she was not given credit in her lifetime so she would not have been awarded it anyway. Unless, someone had explained her contribution in those 4 years.

“Although her works on coal and viruses were appreciated in her lifetime, her contributions to the discovery of the structure of DNA were largely recognised posthumously.”

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by Angostura on Thursday November 30, 2017 @09:02AM (#15815725)

There's actually an apology from - Watson, I think - as an addendum in my old copy of The Double Helix bought in the 1980s.

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by tantalor on Thursday November 30, 2017 @11:48AM (#15817178)

Another comes to mind: Lise Meitner, who developed theory of nuclear fission.

And there are more: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/13/130519-wome...

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Re:50 Years Ago Jocelyn Bell Discovered Pulsars by dhimes on Thursday November 30, 2017 @03:32PM (#15819240)

And Emmy Noether is another one who had to fight for her due recognition

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmy_Noether

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