Today, Google celebrates what would have been the 131st birthday of Lucy Wills, a celebrated English haematologist.
Wills is best known for changing the face of preventive prenatal care for women, thanks to her analysis of prenatal anaemia.
To celebrate, Google has launched a special Doodle of Wills in her lab.
Here’s everything you need to know about Lucy Wills, including who she was, and what she’s best known for.
Who was Lucy Wills?
Lucy Wills was a pioneering medical researcher, who worked in the field of haematology (the study of blood).
Wills was born on May 10 1888, and attended the Cheltenham College for Young Ladies - one of the first British boarding schools to train female students in science and mathematics.
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In 1911, Will earned first-class honours in botany and geology at Cambridge University’s Newnham College, before going on to train to become a doctor at the London School of Medicine for Women.
What is Lucy Wills known for?
Wills is best known for changing the face of preventative prenatal care for women, thanks to her analysis of prenatal anaemia.
She travelled to India to investigate a severe form of life-threatening anaemia affecting pregnant factory workers in Bombay.
Suspecting that poor nutrition was the cause, Wills discovered what came to be known as the ‘Wills Factor’ when a laboratory monkey’s health improved after being fed Marmite - which is made of yeast extract.
Later research proved the factor to be folic acid, which is now recommended to pregnant women all over the world.
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What did Lucy Wills do in her spare time?
Aside from her work in medicine, Wills enjoyed mountain climbing, cross-country skiing, and rode a bicycle to work rather than driving in a car.
She devoted much of her life to traveling the world and working to ensure the health of mothers-to-be.
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How is Google celebrating Lucy Wills?
To celebrate what would have been the 131st birthday of Lucy Wills, Google has launched a special Google Doodle.
The Doodle features Wills in her lab, studying a jar of Marmite, which her research found improved anaemia in pregnant women.
Google users in Argentina, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Estonia, France, Greece, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, New Zealand, Peru, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States will see the Doodle today.
