Chien-Shiung Wu:
Crossing the Frontier of Experimental Physics
Early Education
"Ignore the obstacles. Just put your head down and keep walking forward." (Zhong-Yi Wu)
Chien-Shiung Wu, fifth from left, with her family (The Washington Post)
Chien-Shiung Wu was born on May 31, 1912, in the small fishing town of Liu He, China. Wu's family valued education and encouraged her to pursue her interests from a young age. Wu's father, Zhong-Yi Wu, was an engineer who believed strongly in gender equality. He opened Ming De School, one of the first girls' schools in China. Wu attended her father's school, and there, she developed a love for math and science.
National Central University (Republic of China)
Wu during her college years (Taiwan Today)
In 1930, Wu enrolled in the prestigious National Central University in China, where she first pursued mathematics but quickly changed her major to physics. In 1934, she graduated with a B.S. degree with top honors at the head of her class. After graduation, Wu worked as a researcher under female professor Dr. Jing-Wei Gu, who encouraged her to study abroad like she herself had at the University of Michigan.
"Chien-Shiung gained confidence in her abilities by collaborating with another woman and reading about other women in the field. She said that learning about scientist Marie Curie at a young age significantly shaped her life and academic pursuits." (New York Historical Society)
In 1936, with the financial support from her uncle, Wu boarded the SS President Hoover to study at the US. It was the last time she saw her parents.