Who was Mary Sommerville?

Mary Somerville (1780-1872) was a Scottish science writer and a polymath. The death of her first husband in 1807 allowed her to pursue intellectual interests, including mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, electricity, geography, magnetism and microscopy. Her second husband, William Sommerville, encouraged Mary's ambitions and she began tutoring a friend’s daughter, Ada Lovelace. At a scientific gathering, Mary met Charles Babbage (1791-1871), who was “making his Calculating-machines”. Mary later introduced Lovelace to Babbage, which sparked a significant professional relationship, resulting in the invention of the first mechanical computer.

Due to her love of astronomy, Mary joined in the discussions about a hypothetical planet on the other side of Uranus. She wrote of her predictions in later editions of the magazine 'Connexion', which were fulfilled in 1846 by the official discovery of Neptune.

In 1869, the British politician John Stuart Mill asked Mary to be the first to sign a petition for female suffrage. Unfortunately, the petition was unsuccessful. In her autobiography, published posthumously from many letters to and from Mary, she declared, “British laws are adverse to women.” Throughout her life, Mary felt the effects of the male-dominated world, particularly in childhood when she could not study the same subjects as her brothers. Fortunately, she also saw positive changes, such as higher education establishments opening to women.