–Through her studies of air, water and food quality in the Industrial Age, she introduced the word “ecology” to the U.S. lexicon as early as 1892 –First woman admitted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and first American woman to earn a degree in chemistry Ellen Swallow Richards (1842-1911), who introduced the word ecology…

The Festival will be unveiling a new program called X-STEM on Thursday, April 24, 2014. X-STEM is a special “Extreme” symposium for middle and high school students featuring interactive presentations by an exclusive group of visionaries who aim to empower and inspire kids about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). These STEM role…

–Director of the famous Hayden Planetarium at the Museum of Natural History, New York City – Hosted the science TV show “NOVA scienceNOW” on PBS –Named to host new sequel to Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” TV series on Fox later in 2013 In addition to his research, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson is widely known for using…

–Widely considered the founder of modern-day Pediatric Cardiology –Discovered the cause of “Blue Baby Syndrome” in infants, and helped ban the use of the drug Thalidomide for pregnant women in the U.S. –Battled dyslexia as a child, and deafness in the later years of her career For years, physicians were baffled by “Blue Baby Syndrome”…

–Called the “Father of the Green Revolution” –Using research in plant genetics, he developed high-yielding, disease-resistant strains of wheat and other crops to dramatically increase food production in poor, developing countries –Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his work In addition to being called the “Father of the Green Revolution”, American agricultural scientist…

–Trained as a nuclear physicist, she abandoned that field to travel the world researching the behavior and history of bees –Established the first worldwide organization for exchanging authoritative research information on bees Born in Britain in 1912, Eva Crane earned a Ph.D. in nuclear physics but left that field to pursue her fascination with bees…

–Known as the “Lady of the Cells” for her Nobel Prize-winning discovery of NGF (nerve growth factor) which helped unlock mysteries of both normal and abnormal growth of nerve cells in the body –Died recently in Italy at age 103 Even up to her final days of life, Rita Levi-Montalcini — the internationally-known biologist and…

–The key scientist who helped NASA plan and identify the Moon landing location for Apollo 11 –Currently is a leading expert in the study of deserts and how to find and sustain water in such environments in the Arab world Two years before America’s historic Apollo 11 moon landing mission was officially confirmed, NASA turned…

–Considered the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees –Her research of primates has led the way to giving us valuable insight into our closest relatives in the animal kingdom At the age of 78, famed British primatology researcher Jane Goodall still maintains a hectic schedule. She is said to be on the road more than 300…

–Known for developing the first highly accurate standardized test for the sexually transmitted infection, syphilis –First black professor appointed at Harvard Medical School Academically talented, William Hinton from the start wanted to be recognized for his achievements instead of his race. As a high school senior in 1909, he was offered a scholarship reserved for…