Albert Einstein is a household name equivalent to the word brilliance. His wild hair and world-changing theories are etched into our collective memory. But even the greatest minds in history have had some help. In Einstein’s case, there are three women in science—some scientists, others foundational supporters—who have had a huge hand in cementing this genius’s legacy.
No, this isn’t some feel-good footnote to Einstein history.
It’s a serious reexamination of the women in science who have contributed, challenged, and supported him—often without acknowledgment. Some shared equations with him. Others nurtured the habits that made his mind tick. Almost none received formal credit.
It’s time to expand the narrative of genius beyond the lone male prodigy. Genius, like science itself, is rarely a solo act.
Mileva Marić, Einstein’s First Wife and Math Partner
Mileva Marić met Einstein at the Zurich Polytechnic in 1896, the only woman in their physics cohort.
From the beginning, their bond was intellectual as well as romantic. Their letters include pages of academic discussions, mathematical calculations, and shared excitement over physics problems.
Some historians argue that Mileva may have contributed significantly to Einstein’s 1905 “miracle year” papers, especially the one on special relativity. Though there’s no formal co-authorship, many point to the language in their letters—phrases like “our work” and “our theory”—as signs of deeper collaboration.
According to their son, Hans Albert, his parents’ “scientific collaboration continued to their marriage”, and that he “remembered seeing them work together in the evenings at the same table.”
Yet Mileva’s contributions are often dismissed or minimized.
Biographers tend to relegate her to the role of “Einstein’s first wife,” skimming over her intellect and influence. Her academic potential was cut short, partly due to societal expectations and motherhood, but also because she lived in the shadow of a rising genius.
Today, feminist scholars are revisiting her story. Was Mileva a co-author in spirit, if not on paper? The evidence may not be conclusive, but the questions are valid and long overdue.
Pauline Einstein: The Matriarch Behind the Mind
Einstein’s mother, Pauline Koch Einstein, wasn’t a scientist. But make no mistake—her influence was massive. A trained pianist with a sharp mind, Pauline was the one who nurtured Albert’s early love of music and insisted on educational rigor even when teachers dismissed him.
When young Albert struggled in structured school environments, Pauline advocated for alternative paths. She moved the family from Munich to Milan, and then to Zurich, to give him better academic opportunities. It was a bold and pivotal move.
Without her persistence, Einstein might never have enrolled in Zurich Polytechnic, where his scientific journey truly began.
Music, often considered Einstein’s emotional outlet, was a gift from Pauline. She taught him discipline through violin practice, and he often credited music for his most creative moments. “If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician,” he once said.
Pauline’s story reminds us that not all scientific contributions are made in labs. Some are made in kitchens and piano rooms, in the quiet nurturing of curiosity and confidence. She may not have written equations, but she shaped the man who did.
Emmy Noether: The Mathematical Powerhouse Einstein Admired
Emmy Noether wasn’t just another brilliant woman in science. She was the mathematician who formalized the foundations of modern theoretical physics. Her works have been regarded as,
“One of the most important mathematical theorems ever proved in guiding the development of modern physics.”
While it is a myth that Einstein failed math, it’s true that he needed some help. During Einstein’s stay at the University of Göttingen in Germany, Noether tutored him on the maths that revealed an apparent flaw to the theory he was working on. Without her contributions, some of Einstein’s concepts would have lacked mathematical foundation.
He personally praised her genius and publicly supported her. In a 1935 letter, he called her “the most significant creative mathematical genius thus far produced since the higher education of women began.” Coming from Einstein, that wasn’t small praise.
So, what exactly is this woman’s contribution in science? Well, for those of you like me who aren’t huge hard sciences fans, Noether’s theorem simply states that,
“Every time something in nature has a symmetry, there’s a physical quantity that stays constant (or is conserved).”
Here’s a great explainer video about her theorem:
Noether’s Theorem might sound abstract, but it’s quietly running the universe behind the scenes. Without her principle, we wouldn’t have modern physics, engineering, or even GPS systems that rely on those laws.
It connects beauty (symmetry) to survival (conservation). Even if you never study physics, you live in a world built on this idea—where your car won’t suddenly stop working because momentum just decided to vanish.
Yet Emmy Noether was denied full academic positions for most of her career. She often worked under male colleagues’ names or in unofficial roles. Only later in life did she receive partial recognition—and even then, it came mostly from abroad.
Simply because she’s a woman.
Her legacy, like Einstein’s, changed physics forever. But her name still isn’t as widely known.
And that gap says a lot about how we remember scientific progress.
No, It’s Not A Coincidence: The Erasure of Women in Science
Einstein’s story isn’t the only one with missing women in the margins. History is full of brilliant men who stood on the shoulders of uncredited women. In many cases, their collaborators, lab partners, or assistants provided key insights—but the men got the headlines.
Patriarchy, I know.
Take Lise Meitner, for example. She co-discovered nuclear fission with Otto Hahn but was left out of the Nobel Prize. Or Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray crystallography work was central to discovering DNA’s structure. Surprise, surprise, all the credit was given to James Watson and Francis Crick instead.
Get to know more women in science whose names and contributions we rarely hear of from this animated video:
Even the great Madame Marie Curie’s accomplishments—her study on radiation, discover of two new elements, and the first woman to ever win a Nobel Prize on physics—are overshadowed by her husband Pierre. Despite her greatest feats, she was denied membership by the French Academy of Sciences, simply because she’s a woman!
Sounds familiar?
Time and time again, women’s accomplishments are downplayed, sidelined, or credited to the men around them. Their work is seen as supportive rather than central, no matter how revolutionary it actually is.
Acknowledgement for Women in Science are Long Overdue
The erasure of women’s contribution in sciences is a systemic one that is rooted in and sustained by a deeply patriarchal society. Cultural and societal norms made it difficult for women to publish, gain tenure, or even speak at conferences. Their labor, both intellectual and emotional, was often treated as background noise.
The myth of the “lone male genius”, such as this of Einstein’s, persists because it’s simple and marketable. But it’s also inaccurate. Science has always been collaborative. And when we ignore the contributions of women, we distort the story of progress itself.
Simply put, let’s give credit where credit is due. In this case, the credit belongs to the women.
SOURCES:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/guest-blog/the-forgotten-life-of-einsteins-first-wife
https://einstein-website.de/en/einstein-pauline-2/
https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/culture/69396/emmy-noether-albert-einstein-symmetries
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