The space race was dominated by men and it was tough for women to make their mark. But some did, and to them, we should be eternally grateful for their inspirational work which helped us learn more about the cosmos. Evelyn Boyd Granville was one such person. She faced prejudice throughout her early life as an African American woman but her calm determination won through in the best possible way.
Not only was she the second person of her race to study for and achieve a Ph.D. in Mathematics, but she was also a teacher too. She then turned her attention to technology and used her vast intelligence to work for IBM on some of their early computing systems. So, every time you use a computer, Evelyn Boyd Granville helped you get to that point.
This was just the beginning of her career which would reach its peak as man was sent to space. She joined NASA and designed software that looked at satellites in orbit and closely examined them as part of Project Vanguard. She also worked on the Apollo projects as part of her amazing career.
Margaret Hamilton was also employed to make sure the Apollo missions ran without a hitch. She was the manager of a team that built the systems which told the modules where to land on the moon. That’s crazy complicated stuff - and she was in charge of it! She was also the first person to realize that what she did could be termed as ‘engineering’ but without there being any mechanical parts. So, she came up with the job title ‘software engineer’ to describe her role at the forefront of innovative technology.
Hamilton’s projects which were applied to the space missions could be just as useful in everyday life. As computers became more widespread, the notion of them ‘crashing’ was a cause for panic. She developed programs that could recover data in the event of a crash as well as stop crashes from happening by finding errors before they caused problems.
George Washington is perhaps the most iconic name in US history. Despite his undeniable military merits that helped the United States achieve independence, the life of America’s first-ever president isn’t without significant controversy. The celebration of Washington as a national hero follows the tendency of history to focus on the positives and overlook ugly truths. The fact is, Washington’s reputation will forever be marred by him being a known slaver, forcing hundreds of slaves to cultivate his Virginia plantation against their will. It’s difficult to imagine any person being content with forced confinement, and Washington’s slaves made frequent attempts to escape his dominion. Just how bad was life for the unfortunate laborers forcibly possessed by the father of American independence?
One of the practices common at Mount Vernon was severing the ties between slaves by separating individuals from their friends and family. Washington strongly disliked slaves venturing to the other side of the plantation to see their loved ones, a journey that was sometimes as far as three miles.
A typical week on the plantation for one of Washington’s slaves meant six days of grueling physical labor from dawn till dusk. Forced to live in filthy, inadequate quarters, illness was common and only exacerbated by fatigue and improper rations. A visiting Polish poet in 1987 wrote of the squalid conditions in which the slaves were forced to live, noting how they were far more miserable than most peasant homes.
Washington’s wrongdoings went beyond an abhorrent disregard for the working and living conditions of his slaves. Plagued by dental issues, Washington paid to have slaves' teeth extracted from their mouths to be fitted into his own. In a book regarding the condition of the president’s teeth, it was revealed that, in total, nine teeth were transplanted from slaves to Washington.