Unit 3 The world of scienceUnit 3The world of scienceWhat is the image of a typical female scientist? Perhaps you imagine a pair of thick glasses, messy hair and a few wrinkles on the forehead? With her high-heeled shoes and graceful posture, Yan Ning may break that stereotype.Called “the goddess scientist”， Yan, 42, is a leading biology researcher at Princeton University in the US. On April 30, she was included among 100 new members and 25 foreign associates into The National Academy of Sciences, a famous scientific institution that aims to recognize outstanding research in the US.You may not know Yan's contribution to biology, but she is a rising star in the science world and her resume is impressive. After graduating from Tsinghua University and Princeton, she was invited to set up her own laboratory at Tsinghua in 2007. At age 30, she became one of China's youngestever female professors.It was a long road to get where she is now. She always believes that scientists need to have a pure mind and perseverance.Yan likes to work at night. She says it's because she can focus when the outside is quiet. She also works at least 14 hours a day, but she's energetic, because research is the most “comfortable” job for her.This devotion to her work probably helped Yan in her research to identify the structures of proteins in cells' plasma membranes, which puzzled scientists for half a century. Her achievements got her listed among the journal Nature's Science Stars of China in 2016.As she realizes her own dreams, Yan tries to encourage more women to pursue careers in science. In her eyes, there is no difference between men and women in the scientific fields.“Women can work as excellent...
