Dame Miriam Rothschild (1908 – 2005), mother of 10 children, was the world’s greatest expert on fleas, as well as a wildflower advocate, code analyst, tuberculosis detective, and … I could go on but I won’t except to add that she once dressed up as a man to play cricket for England.
Dame Miriam simplified her life by wearing exactly one dress with a matching jacket, every day. That is, she had found an outfit she liked somewhere around 1960, so she had it made up in multiple colors and patterns–and that was her wardrobe.
She also kept her suitcase packed at all times, to make traveling simpler.
Dame Miriam very recently died–I just found out today. She has been one of my personal heroines since David McCullough profiled her in 1992 for Smithsonian Magazine. If you’re looking for a good scientific role model, check out this excellent and amusing retrospective.