#21 An Early Chemist Whose Research Was Stolen & A Woman Tutored By The Pope Artwork

Mostly Unsung

The weekly comedy history podcast that brings you bitesize biographies of the extraordinary, eccentric, outrageous and occasionally ordinary lives that until now have gone mostly unsung... mostly. Join your hosts Annie and Andrea as they bring you stories that your history teacher never taught you!

If you like stuffy lectures then you're not going to be a fan, sorry! But if you are looking to hang out with two old friends who love story telling, a good laugh and forgotten figures from history then welcome!

Covering everything from scientists to Grandmothers, survivors of wars to eccentric millionaires, all via ghost stories, anecdotes and terrible impressions of Hollywood legend Tim Curry. Come and hang out, have a giggle and join us every Friday.

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Mostly Unsung

#21 An Early Chemist Whose Research Was Stolen & A Woman Tutored By The Pope

September 05, 2025 • Mostly Unsung • Season 1 • Episode 21

Welcome back listeners! Come and join the podcasting friends Annie and Andrea as they get stuck in to more historical stories and long lost tales! As usual, it's all served up with laughs and tangents on everything from the uniform of art teachers to a tangent about a previous tangent!

Join Andrea as she follows a young, black woman in early 20th Century America. most Universities won't even accept her application, but with sheer determination she makes great strides in Chemistry; Until a University President likes the look of her groundbreaking work with leprosy just a little too much...

Then Annie is diving into Italian history with a student who decides just one thesis won't prove her ability, or even two...or ten....The patriarchy klaxon is sounding loud and clear, but luckily she knows a few important people, and when even the Pope recognises your genius, you know you're destined for great things!

For this episode Andrea used these sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Ball

https://scientificwomen.net/women/ball-alice-121

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/08/obituaries/alice-ball-overlooked.html

For this episode Annie used these sources:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Laura-Bassi

https://www.europeana.eu/en/stories/laura-bassi-one-of-the-first-women-in-science

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