Giants in History: Meemann Chang

The scientist who studied fish fossils 

Meemann Chang (17 April 1936 - )

China

Meemann Chang (born 17 April 1936) is a Chinese palaeontologist who studied the fossils of ancient fish to understand the evolution of life. By examining fossils, she uncovered new insights on how vertebrates, animals with a backbone, migrated from the sea and became adapted to live on land. Chang was named the 2018 L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Awards laureate for her work determining that lobe-finned fish – not lungfish as previously thought – were the evolutionary link between marine life and mammals. In the same year, she received the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Achievement Prize, which recognizes the accomplishments of Chinese scientists. Several species have been named in her honour, including the extinct fish Meemannia, the extinct bird Archaeornithura meemannae and the dinosaur Sinovenator changii. Even a unique organ of armoured prehistoric fish, consisting of an internal cavity with an external opening, was named “Chang’s Apparatus” after her. In 1983, Chang became the first female to head the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) in China.

Institution: 
Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology
Academic discipline: 
Awards: 
2018 L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Award
2018 Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Achievement Prize