Almost 50 women-scientists have the world most prestigious scientific award – the Nobel Prize. Nevertheless, the idea that the serious science is exclusively for men is still commonplace in our society. LuckyBooks knows that science is open for everyone and is ready to fight against stereotypes.

This time LuckyBooks together with the camp Dzherela Torelantnosti made children acquainted with the famous women-scientists.

Our camp have been introducing the indigenous cultures of Ukrainian ethnic communities to the participants since 2002. As we understand that many of our children come from traditional and conservative families, it is quite important for us to speak about the necessity of including everyone in the Ukrainian society. That is why this year we paid special attention to the gender equality issues. Girls and boys have met the outstanding women who represent the ethnic communities that lived or are currently living in Ukraine, says Tetiana Muratkina, the director of the Dzherelo Tolerantnosti camp.

Nearly one hundred participants of the camp in Slavske from 10 to 12 years old took part in the lecture by Iryna Nikolaichuk, the Department Coordinator from IT company Lucky Labs.

The children’s attention is paid not only to the main ideas or discoveries of women-scientists. It is mostly focused on the emotional moments of their lives. And it is true, every woman I told about overcame great hardships on her path to success. Every story of both success and life of each woman is unique. School education should not omit these facts. Well, the famous figures - both men and women - should become more than bronze monuments and portraits decorated with embroidered rushnyks, Iryna Nikolaichuk believes

The women who held their lectures were not chosen by chance. She selected those scientists who not only made a great contribution to the development of science but also represented the ethnicity that can be found in Ukraine. The Greek community was represented by the philosopher and astronomer Hypatia, the radiophysicist Marie Sklodowska Curie personified the Polish community, the biologist Natalya Melikyan - the Armenian one, the theorist of literature Julia Kristeva - the Bulgarian one, the linguist Adile Emirova - the Crimean Tatarian one, and Maryna Viazovska, the mathematician, represented the Ukrainian community.

The children were interested in the areas of research in which the scientists had made their discoveries, for example a sixteen-dimensional space the calculations for which were conducted by Viazovska and the dualism of “I - a stranger” relations that were analyzed by Kristeva, as well as in their biographies and those obstacles that they overcame on their way - sexism, religious disputes, the Second World War, genocide of Armenians, deportation of Crimean Tatars. Schoolchildren didn’t leave behind the general issues regarding the place of woman in the world’s history and what changes are transpiring in this area in the 21st century.

So, a lot of questions were raised after the lecture. “I have never heard the words “philosopherin” and “astronomerin”. They are so beautiful! Why are they used so rarely?” “Why was there no need for girls in hiding with books in Ancient Greece? While in Poland they had to do this.” “When did women decide that they wanted to study again? Did they recall this fact themselves or did someone else remind them of such a possibility?” “Are women allowed now to do whatever they want? And if they want, for example, to cook borsch, won’t they be laughed at?”

The authors of the best questions and the participants who gave the most skillful answers during a quiz were presented a book by Alina Shtefan “Summer in the DNA Length”. LuckyBooks made a presentation of this book at the Book Arsenal this year. Soon a book by Mayim Bialik, the scientists, and star of the sitcom The Big Bang Theory, called Girling Up will soon be published within the LuckyBooks project.