Overlooked No More: Beatrice Tinsley, Astronomer Who Saw the Course of the Universe

Thanks for this lovely article. I knew Beatrice, having met her at several conferences, including the famous 1977 Yale workshop mentioned in the article. By then she was already recognized as a superstar in the field, yet she was modest and kind to everyone. It's a tragedy for astronomy that she passed away so soon.

I received my PhD at UT Austin, a few decades after Beatrice Tinsley. She was a continued legend and inspiration, a woman who got her degree in three years (!) while commuting from Dallas and raising two children. Her work was ground-breaking, audacious, and still relevant. I'm glad the broader world gets to read her story here.

"Before he could speak, however, a young woman named Beatrice Tinsley stood up and told the audience that everything they were about to hear was wrong." I hope that this account is incorrect. While such behavior would probably appear colorful and feisty to a journalist, it would have been both offensive and boorish. Particularly in the context of an academic presentation. There is customarily ample time for questions and comments at the end of the talk, and Ms Tinsley's statement would have been in order at that time. Scientific feuds are both commonplace and accepted, but they do not need to be made personal.

What a wonderful story of a life. It's wrong that her death was not properly recognized by The Times at the time, but I am glad to have had the chance to learn about Dr. Tinsley's life now.

Beautiful mind!

Many thanks to the Times for bringing the story of this remarkable genius to our attention. Please note that Bright Star, written by fellow New Zealander Christie Cole Catley, is a thoroughly enjoyable biography of Beatrice Tinsley. Lively and well-researched, it plumbs both the science and the personal politics of Tinsley's life in pre-feminist America, while exploring her particular intellect. Given the current emphasis on opening STEM education to women, this book is a must-read for aspiring scientists.

Thank you. Amid the terrible gloom engulfing our country and world, this story and so many others offer a light, perhaps still long in the future. Let us hope not.

Physics is the mother lode of science, mined by legions. Sometimes individuals come forth with new nuggets, even vast discoveries. Not now. Now we're in a time where it takes 300 member teams to sift the data and crunch numbers. Under the weight of such big science, few individuals stand up like Tinsley, confident in alternate analysis. Witness the huge fizzle around dark matter. Something's got to give, because applying more and more math doesn't uncover everything, or much of anything. Would Tinsley rebel today, if she was alive? Or would she retreat, saying, as we all do during boom times, "this time it's different."

Thank you! That is a very moving memorial. I hope her children will come to recognize this woman’s supreme sacrifice. We women still have a long road ahead for true equality in the world and the workplace and we are not progressing rapidly enough. The males of this world need to realize that without us women, they would not exist. We are not chattel. We are not inferior.

In 1987 I was a student at Cornell, working on a radio astronomy project at Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. My housemate in Ithaca, a woman graduate student in condensed matter physics, gave me "My Daughter Beatrice," a memoir by the astronomer's father. Role models were scarce back then, and we eagerly devoured stories of the lives of women scientists. I was lucky to know Martha Haynes, a faculty member in the astronomy department. Still, I had been one of only three women in a class of about 60 undergraduate physics majors, and I was the only female student in one of my graduate engineering seminars (12 students in all). The professor of that seminar, an older man, greeted the class each day with "Good morning, Gentlemen." I was so puzzled--I thought maybe he was half-blind and hadn't noticed me. (One of my classmates finally spoke up and said, "I think you mean ladies and gentlemen.") Anyway, this is why we women students collected books and articles about the ones who had made it--and what challenges they faced and what choices they had to make. I remember being very sad that Dr. Tinsley's time was so short.

The poem that closes the obituary is profoundly beautiful. Did Beatrice Tinsley write more poems that we may read?

Beautiful!

Thank you for letting us know about Beatrice Tinsley. Her story highlights how much we have lost in society by making the journey so difficult for brilliant women and minorities.

Thank you! for rectifying years of neglect. If only this effort to expose the prejudice against women in science were extended into our public school system. Young girls would learn that it has not only been men who furthered the cause of science but also women who paid a steep price-- ignored and derided by colleagues and the loss of children and families. Kudos to the NYT. Please continue bringing these important women to light.

Kudos to the NY Times for bringing some long-overdue recognition to Beatrice Tinsley, whom I had never heard of previously. The mind shirks at the realization of how many brilliant, ambitious women throughout history were prevented from pursuing and realizing their dreams and potential because of male discrimination. We'll never be able to fully grasp what has been lost as a result.

Brava to this wonderful woman. Kudos to the Times for the recognition of Dr. Tinsley.

Thank you NYT for these belated obits. Women have been second class citizens and this is a small step to have them take their rightful place in history. Better late than never.