Among the team of experimental physicists who developed the first atomic bomb for the U.S. government during World War II, Chien-Shiung Wu (1912-1997) spent 37 years as a leading researcher at Columbia University. She was noted for her meticulous experimental work in studying radioactive interactions. Her most famous experiment overturned what long had been considered a fundamental law of nature, the principle of conservation of parity.

Throughout her life, Wu battled the gender bias which belittled the accomplishments of women in science. Despite her remarkable achievements, boundless professional energy, and brilliant problem-solving skills, Wu was often slow to be rewarded for her work, particularly in the early stages of her career. Known as a thorough and precise experimenter, Wu was always in demand because of her trusted ability to test new theories. Many thought Wu should have won the Nobel Prize for leading the experiments which disproved the...