Forbes has published its list of 100 Most Powerful Women for 2012, with Angela Merkel on top, recognizing the achievements and contributions of women from all around the world. The list, edited by editor Mary Ellen Egan, is based on economic impact and visibility of leading women around the globe and all walks of life.

Silicon Valley tech girls are getting major recognition and I’m not referring to only the media. Fashion designers have also taken notice, inviting many tech heavyweights to VIP fashion events, including front row seating at Fashion Week. 

Windows 8, Facebook IPO troubles, mobile advertising challenges, and what a hot lawsuit against a Silicon Valley VC means for women in technology.

Read on to see the stories making headline news on the tech scene this week!

 If you’ve never heard of Marissa Mayer, one of Google’s senior executives (one of few women exectutives in tech), allow me to fill you in:

• According to Wikipedia, Mayer was born in 1975
• She graduated from  Stanford University
• She joined Google in 1999, when the company had under 20 employees (talk about the right place at the right time!)
• Mayer became the first female engineer hired by Google
• Over 10 years later, Marissa is a Google Executive with her official title being; Vice President of Location and Local Services, and is frequently the warm, public face of the tech Goliath

To me personally, this short synopsis is extremely inspiring.