In 1974 the Nobel laureate Sir Robert Robinson OM PRS (1886–1975) was gathering information for the memoirs he was writing. As part of his research, he recorded a conversation with his former student, fellow Nobel laureate Professor Dorothy Hodgkin OM FRS (1910–1994), during which she outlined the key stages of her career. She explained the principles underlying crystallography and described her work on the structure of biological molecules including penicillin and vitamin B₁₂—for which she received the Nobel Prize—and on insulin. This paper includes a verbatim transcript of the conversation, which reveals the key figures in Hodgkin's career and the technical breakthroughs which underlay the elucidation of the structure of very large complex molecules. The paper includes a commentary on the value of oral accounts and concludes on the issues raised and not raised during the conversation. Sir Robert was President of the Royal Society between 1945 and 1950 when women were first elected Fellows. Hodgkin was elected in 1947. However, no mention is made of the challenges facing women developing a scientific career in the first half of the twentieth century.

1974 年，诺贝尔奖获得者罗伯特·罗宾逊爵士 OM PRS (1886-1975) 正在为他正在撰写的回忆录收集信息。作为研究的一部分，他记录了与他以前的学生、诺贝尔奖获得者 Dorothy Hodgkin OM FRS 教授（1910-1994 年）的对话，在此期间她概述了她职业生涯的关键阶段。_{她解释了晶体学的基本原理，并描述了她在包括青霉素和维生素 B 12}在内的生物分子结构方面的工作——她因此获得了诺贝尔奖——以及胰岛素。这篇论文包括对话的逐字记录，揭示了霍奇金职业生涯中的关键人物以及阐明超大复杂分子结构的技术突破。该论文包括对口头陈述价值的评论，并对谈话中提出和未提出的问题进行了总结。Sir Robert was President of the Royal Society between 1945 and 1950 when women were first elected Fellows. Hodgkin was elected in 1947. However, no mention is made of the challenges facing women developing a scientific career in the first half of the twentieth century.