As  we honor women in science and pay homage to women who actively move science forward today, it’s perhaps also the occasion to celebrate two women -- one from the distant past, one more recent -- who are present in the current research of the UNESCO-L’Oréal International Fellows.

Today at 2pm EST, NASA will make a huge announcement during a news conference. Apparently scientist Felisa Wolfe Simon will announce the discovery of an all new bacteria whose DNA is completely alien to what we know. This bacteria has been discovered in the poisonous Mono Lake in California next to Yosemite Park. Read more here

In the view of Dr. Karimat El-Sayed science launches a "virtuous cycle" that increases human well-being. She illustrates her faith in science with a discussion of four fields in which major discoveries have immeasurably improved the quality of our lives. Dr. El-Sayed is Professor of Physics at Ain-Shams University in Egypt.

''As the mysteries of the human genetic code are unraveled, people need protection so that breakthroughs are used to treat and heal, not to isolate and discriminate.'' Dr. Nagwa Abdel Meguid writes of the potential for unethical use of genetic information and calls for strict guidelines to ensure both privacy for individuals and knowledge-sharing for scientists.

For Dr. Karimat El-Sayed bioethics ''concerns the morals of dealing with all living creatures.'' Based on the religious concepts of the Koran and the laws of nature, Dr. El-Sayed outlines her ideas on the ethical and unethical uses of the latest advances in biotechnology that, while opening doors to enormous progress in human welfare, also leave us vulnerable to disaster.