Wang Zhenyi

Wang Zhenyi was born in China in 1768 during the Qing Dynasty. She grew up in a family that loved learning. Her grandfather had a huge library, and her father was a doctor who also studied science. Wang Zhenyi was very clever and loved to read from a young age. Her grandfather taught her astronomy, her father taught her maths and geography, and her grandmother taught her poetry.

When her grandfather died, the family moved to the north of China for five years. There, she read many books and even learned horse riding and archery. At 16, she travelled across southern China with her father, seeing many new places and learning even more. All of these experiences helped shape her into a curious and brilliant young woman.

Wang Zhenyi became one of the most respected scientists of her time. She worked hard to learn on her own. She became a master in astronomy and mathematics, subjects that were not typically allowed for women to study at that time.

She wrote many important books, including 'Dispute of the Procession of the Equinoxes', 'Dispute of Longitude and Stars', and 'The Explanation of a Lunar Eclipse'. In these, she explained how stars, planets, the Sun, and the Moon move through space. She even made her own experiment to show how a lunar eclipse happens using a lamp, a mirror, and a table. Her findings were correct and amazed many people.

In maths, she studied trigonometry and the Pythagorean theorem. She rewrote hard maths books in simpler words so others could learn too. Her book 'The Musts of Calculation' made multiplication and division easier to understand.

She also wrote about the Earth's shape, challenging the old belief that the Earth was flat. In her paper 'Theory of the Earth's Roundness', she used facts and reasoning to show the Earth is round. She helped fix wrong ideas about calendars and star movements, too.

Wang Zhenyi broke many rules for women of her time. In the 1700s, most girls were not allowed to study science or write books, but she did both. She taught herself, wrote many works, and even taught boys.

Even though she died at just 29 years old, she made a big impact. Today, people still study her work and remember her as a brilliant scholar and a brave woman who followed her dreams. Wang Zhenyi showed the world that learning is for everyone.

  In 1994, a crater on Venus was named after her!

Besides science and math, Wang Zhenyi also loved poetry. She wrote poems that were shared with other women scholars in her area. Her grandmother taught her how to write poems when she was young, and she continued to do so.

Wang Zhenyi was also skilled in other areas. She learned medicine from her father and trained in martial arts and horse riding during her time in the north. Her wide range of interests made her a well-rounded and impressive person. She used every chance she had to learn something new, and that helped her become one of China's greatest minds of the 18th century.