Laura Bassi

Laura Maria Caterina Bassi was an Italian physicist and academic. Recognised and depicted as "Minerva", she was the second woman in the world to earn the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and the first woman to have a doctorate in science. Working at the University of Bologna, she was also the first salaried woman teacher in a university. In fact, at one time she was the highest paid employee. She eventually became the first female university professor in the world. She was also the first woman member of any scientific establishment, when she was elected to the Academy of Sciences of the Institute of Bologna in 1732. Bassi had no formal education and was privately tutored from age five till she was twenty. By then she was well versed in all major disciplines including sciences and mathematics. Noticing her ability, Prospero Lambertini, the Archbishop of Bologna became her patron.