What would the world be without women?

From beer and dishwashers to Wi-Fi: inventions that changed everyday life

We often hear the question: what is a man without a moustache? In March, we turn the tables and ask: what is a world without women? Mothers, sisters, friends… queens, female managers and scientists… not to mention teachers, nurses or cleaning ladies? We don't even want to imagine, but what we do know is that they are all equally important and that they all contribute to making communities - households, work teams and families - function without anyone even wondering how.

This is precisely the question that many women throughout history have asked and deserve to have their names written in gold letters in many books. Although we all know about the inventions of Marie Curie, the stories written by Agatha Christie and Jane Austen, or Frida Kahlo’s and Coco Chanel’s contribution to arts and culture, on International Women's Day, we give credit to equally strong, but somewhat less known women whose inventions or endeavours have quite changed the world.

Maria Gaetana Agnesi - mathematician

Is there a better way to start this overview than with a brilliant female mathematician? Maria Gaetana Agnesi lived in Italy in the 18th century, and although she was exceptional from a young age, she caused a sensation in the academic world in 1748, when she published the book Istituzioni analitiche. The title may not say much, but it was the first book on mathematics written by a woman.

It certainly came into the hands of thousands of female mathematics students in the centuries that followed, so let’s mention that, according to the latest available data for the 2024/2025 academic year, 1 342 female students were enrolled in university mathematics studies, and in 2024, a total of 315 women graduated from mathematics studies. Maybe some of them will continue their careers at a university, so let’s point out that M. Agnesi is also the first woman to be offered a position as a mathematics teacher at a university. About 250 years later, more precisely in the 2024/2025 academic year, out of the total number of employed teachers and teaching assistants at institutions of higher education, 10 294 were women, that is, 52.5%.
 
Josephine Cochrane - inventor of the dishwasher

Josephine Cochrane decided to put an end to washing dishes manually back in 1887. This wealthy American loved to throw parties, but she didn't like what happened after the guests left. So, she patented the first commercial dishwasher to make it easier to wash her expensive china.
More than a hundred years after this invention, many Croatian households could still only dream of having a dishwasher. According to the Household Budget Survey in 1998, only 7.7% of households owned a dishwasher, while in 2022, that share increased to 62.8% of households.

While we are waiting for the latest data (the Household Budget Survey is being conducted throughout 2026), let’s point out that in the first 11 months of 2025, according to provisional data, we imported 169 255 dishwashers and exported 34 880.

Florence Parpart - inventor of the electric refrigerator

Another widely used invention came as a result of considering the needs of households. In 1914, Florence Parpart designed a modern electric refrigerator that cooled food using an electric water circulation system. This made food preservation much easier, and it became unimaginable to have a kitchen without this appliance, which was owned by 99.9% of households in Croatia in 2022.
   
Nancy Johnson - inventor of the ice cream machine

Although she did not have an electric refrigerator back then, Nancy Johnson enjoyed the taste of ice cream. To make its preparation easier, she invented an ice cream machine back in the mid-19th century. Millions of fans of this refreshing dessert are certainly thankful to her to this day, so let's mention that in Croatia, according to provisional data for 2024, ice cream production amounted to 313 615 hectolitres. Enough to enjoy your favourite flavour!

Margaret Knight - paper bag

From the previous three inventions presented, it can be concluded that the experience and curious minds of women led to truly useful discoveries. The same was with the invention of the paper bag. While working in a paper products factory, American Margaret Knight noticed that production was not efficient, so in 1871, she decided to automate the process of producing paper bags. Her colleague tried to present the patent as his own, but Margaret sued him and became the first woman to win a lawsuit for patent infringement. She later applied for 27 more patents, and let's say that in 2024, a total of 68 patents were filed in Croatia.

Today, everyday life without paper bags is unimaginable, so let's mention that, according to provisional data, we produced 43.1 thousand tonnes of them in 2024, which is significantly more than in 2016, when we produced 19.4 thousand tonnes of paper bags.

Mary Phelps Jacob - bra

Who better understands the needs of women than women themselves? This was the guiding principle of Mary Phelps Jacob when she invented the modern bra at the beginning of the 20th century, putting an end to wearing rather uncomfortable corsets. Her invention is still a symbol of femininity today, and in 2024, according to provisional data, we produced 426 415 bras. In the same year, the import of bras amounted to 19.7 million.

Amelia Earhart - the first woman to fly across the Atlantic

If there is anyone for whom we can say that they know no boundaries, it is certainly Amelia Earhart. Probably the most famous female pilot in history, she navigated a "man's" world brilliantly, which is why she became a feminist icon. She was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, and she certainly inspired thousands of girls, teenagers, and women to follow their dreams.
 
 
Hedy Lamarr - wireless data transfer

Whenever Hedy Lamarr’s name is mentioned, most people first think of her acting achievements and beauty. However, it is perhaps less known that this Hollywood diva, in addition to the seventh art, also left a great mark in science. During World War II, Hedy invented a system for encoding messages by frequency hopping. Today's technology such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi devices apply a similar operating principle, so it can be concluded that without Hedy we wouldn’t have wireless data transfer. Although Hedy was one of the few women in the so-called man's world in the 1940s, today, more precisely according to provisional data for 2024, the share of women in the total number of persons employed in research and development in Croatia amounted to 47.5%. In the same year, we had 8 355 female researchers, which accounted for 49.1% of the total number of researchers.

Mesopotamian women - beer

For the last female invention that we present, we will go far back in history. According to many sources, the first beer was prepared by women in ancient Mesopotamia! Allegedly, they both sold it and consumed it, and the drink was considered a gift of goddesses, not gods.

Today, beer is produced all over the world, we can certainly say that there is a whole science and culture of drinking beer, and probably everyone's favourite way of consumption is in a relaxed atmosphere in the company of friends. Before we get to the data on domestic production, let's mention that, according to provisional data, in the first 11 months of 2025, we imported 92.0 million litres of beer, mostly from Austria, and exported 88.9 million litres, mostly to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
 
We cannot finish this statistical overview of women's inventions and achievements without demographic statistics. According to the mid-2024 population estimate, the share of women in Croatia was 51.3%, and the life expectancy of women at birth in 2024 was 81.9 years. This is much higher than about sixty years ago, in 1961, when women were expected to live to 69.0 years old.

The average age of women has also increased over the years.
   
In the end, do you have an answer to the question of what would the world be without women? Think about it and answer by yourself, remember the women in your life, call them and tell them why you can't imagine your world without them.
Happy International Women’s Day!

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