• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling

2

Ohio city workers are covering automated license plate readers with trash bags as officials sound the alarm on 'egregious violations' of privacy

3

Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent

1

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling

2

Ohio city workers are covering automated license plate readers with trash bags as officials sound the alarm on 'egregious violations' of privacy

3

Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent
Commentarynobel prize

How We Can All Fix Wikipedia’s Lack of Female Representation

By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 4, 2018, 9:53 AM ET

This article first appeared in Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the top tech news. To get it delivered daily to your in-box, sign up here.

On Tuesday morning, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced three winners for this year’s Nobel prize in Physics. As we mentioned in Data Sheet, one of those winners–Donna Strickland of the University of Waterloo—was the first woman to win the award in 55 years and only the third woman ever, following atomic modeler Maria Goeppert Mayer in 1963 and radiation research pioneer Marie Curie in 1903. As has also been widely reported, Strickland was also the only one of those three women who lacked a Wikipedia page prior to Tuesday.

Back in March, someone tried to write a Wikipedia entry for one of the most important optical physicists on the planet, only to have their proposed entry rejected on May 23 by one of Wikipedia’s volunteer editing crew because the “submission is about a person not yet shown to meet notability guidelines.” That the draft entry cited four major scientific awards Strickland had won and her stint as president of the Optical Society seemingly went over the head of said editor. As Quartz pointed out, the sad story isn’t all that surprising, as only 17% of Wikipedia’s biographical articles are about women. Thankfully, yesterday’s female Nobel winner, chemist Frances Arnold of CalTech, was not among the overlooked—she’s had a page since 2008.

The overall state affairs remains sad, but it doesn’t have to be permanent. Recently, the New York Times decided to begin correcting a terrible historical oversight in its obituaries. Since 1851 and until only a few decades ago, the paper ran obits mainly for men and overlooked the lives of hundreds or perhaps thousands of worthy female subjects. Even pretty famous people like the poet Sylvia Plath, the writer Charlotte Bronte, and the photographer Diane Arbus were ignored at their passing. Now the paper is trying to rectify those oversights by slowly adding obituaries for people from the past. Some recent entries include journalist and anti-lynching advocate Ida Wells, who died in 1931, and Chinese poet Qiu Jin, who passed away in 1907.

Fixing the thousands of overlooked women, alive and dead, in Wikipedia could be even easier. That’s because anyone can write an entry in the gigantic online encyclopedia. The site itself has an excellent beginner’s guide to writing entries. Physics researcher Jess Wade is already hard at work on the task—she’s added hundreds of entries covering women scientists. As they say in journalism, write what you know. Who’s a leader, a standout, a pioneering woman in your field who is lacking a Wikipedia entry? What are you waiting for, get busy.

(This story was updated on October 5 to clarify that a proposed article about Strickland was rejected by a Wikipedia editor.)

About the Author
By Aaron Pressman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Commentary

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Commentary

as
CommentaryVenture Capital
The most contrarian and durable bet in AI is 85 million moms
By Allison SternJune 3, 2026
14 hours ago
adc
CommentaryLeadership
AI is turning workers into superhumans. Their leadership teams haven’t kept up
By Adrienne Down CoulsonJune 2, 2026
2 days ago
liaquat
CommentaryBubbles
I won a Pulitzer for explaining the Great Depression. The AI spending boom terrifies me
By Liaquat AhamedJune 2, 2026
2 days ago
Allison Danielsen is CEO, Tallo.
CommentaryCareers
My wrist injury derailed my college plans. It’s why I’m a CEO today
By Allison DanielsenMay 31, 2026
4 days ago
treble
CommentaryElections
I built a startup from scratch and still nearly died because of a broken healthcare system. That’s why I’m running for Congress
By Jonathan TrebleMay 31, 2026
4 days ago
bn
CommentaryEducation
Bill Nye: Companies say there’s a skills gap. They’re wrong — and students can prove it
By Bill NyeMay 31, 2026
4 days ago

Most Popular

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling
North America
Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling
By Katie Savin, Callie Freitag, Matthew Borus and The ConversationJune 2, 2026
2 days ago
Ohio city workers are covering automated license plate readers with trash bags as officials sound the alarm on 'egregious violations' of privacy
Cybersecurity
Ohio city workers are covering automated license plate readers with trash bags as officials sound the alarm on 'egregious violations' of privacy
By Sasha RogelbergJune 3, 2026
14 hours ago
Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent
Environment
Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJune 1, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of June 3, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 3, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 3, 2026
15 hours ago
Southwest exec says the free bag and assigned seating overhaul is already paying off
Travel & Leisure
Southwest exec says the free bag and assigned seating overhaul is already paying off
By Preston ForeJune 2, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of June 2, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 2, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 2, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.