When researching women in electronics for a previous blog, I had way too much material to share. So here is a follow-on post that offers a summary of some interesting women in electronics, particularly in areas like mechanical engineering and computer science. As I’ve said before, this is not an attempt at a thorough list, so please, add comments with women whom you would like to acknowledge!
Katherine Burr Blodgett, PhD
Blodgett was the first woman awarded a doctorate in physics from Cambridge University and the first woman to be hired as a scientist at General Electric. She received a total of eight U.S. patents and was the sole inventor on six of them. Her inventions included: perfecting tungsten filaments in electric lamps (1916), smoke screens (WW2), non-reflecting glass (1938). The non-reflecting glass was used in consumer products (e.g. picture frames and camera lenses) and optics.
Josephine Cochrane
In 1886, Cochrane invented a mechanical dishwasher for her home; she was issued patent number 355,139 on December 28, 1886. Then, she founded Garis-Cochrane Manufacturing Company (later renamed Cochrane’s Crescent Washing Machine Company) to manufacture her machines. Cochrane showed her new machine at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893 where she won the prize for “best mechanical construction, durability and adaptation to its line of work.” After her death, her company was acquired by Kitchen Aid, and she was posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2006 for her invention of the dishwasher.
Annie Easley
Easley began her career in 1950s as a computer programmer, using languages like Formula Translating System (Fortran) and the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) to support NASA programs. She developed and implemented code used in energy-conversion systems, analyzing alternative power technology. This code was used for early hybrid vehicles and the Centaur upper-stage rocket. From the NASA website: “Later in her career, she took on the additional role of equal employment opportunity (EEO) counselor. In this role she helped supervisors address issues of gender, race, and age in discrimination complaints at the lowest level and in the most cooperative way possible. Less formally, she helped pave the way for women’s rights at the center when she and her room supervisor made a pact to wear pantsuits the following day, saying, ‘You know, we took the emphasis off [of] what you’re wearing. It’s more like what you’re actually producing.’”
Grace Hopper, PhD
Grace Hopper was a computer scientist, United States Navy rear admiral, and inventor of the first computer language compiler. According to one source, she is responsible for the term “bug” for a computer glitch, after she had to remove a moth from her computer. There is much to read about Hopper, but here are some highlights: PhD in mathematics from Yale (1934), professor of mathematics Vassar (1931), first woman (and first American) to become a Distinguished Fellow of the British Computer Society (1973), first woman to receive US National Medal of Technology as an individual (1991). In 2016 she posthumously received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in recognition of her “lifelong leadership role in the field of computer science.” In 1996, the Navy commissioned the USS Hopper, a guided military destroyer in her honor. In 1994, AnitaB.org started the Grace Hopper Celebration https://ghc.anitab.org/, which is “the world’s largest gathering of women technologists, where women from around the world learn, network, and celebrate their achievements.” It will next be held in Philadelphia, PA (and virtually) in October 2024.
Shirley Jackson, PhD
Shirley Jackson was the first African American woman to earn a PhD at MIT (it was in Theoretical Elementary Particle Physics). Her research led to notable telecommunications inventions. For instance, based on some of her work, inventors created Caller ID, the portable fax, and fiber optic cables. Career highlights: theoretical physicist at Bell Laboratories, chair of U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, co-chair President Obama’s President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, served on the boards of IBM and FedEx, and president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York.
Mary Lou Jepsen, PhD
Mary Lou Jepsen co-founded and served as CTO of One Laptop Per Child, a nonprofit organization that provided children worldwide with affordable notebook computers. Holding a BS in electrical engineering from Brown, a Masters from MIT, and a PhD in optical physics from Brown, Jepsen was the inventor for over 250 published or issued patents. Time magazine named her in their list of the hundred most influential scientists and thinkers in the world (2008), and CNN named her as one of their 2013 top 10 thinkers in science and technology for her work in display innovation.
Heddy Lamarr (née Hedwig Eva Kiesler)
Much has been written about famous actress Heddy Lamarr “the mother of Wi-Fi,” so in summary here I will note that she and her colleague George Antheil were awarded U.S. Patent No. 2,292,387 in August of 1942 for frequency hopping resulting from work intended to prevent torpedoes from being intercepted. The Navy chose not to use the technology at the time, and the patent expired before the technology was used to implement wireless communications we know today. Eventually, the Electronic Frontier Foundation jointly awarded Lamarr and Antheil with their Pioneer Award in 1997. Lamarr also became the first woman to receive the Invention Convention’s Bulbie Gnass Spirit of Achievement Award. Lamarr was inducted in 2014 into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for the development of her frequency hopping technology.
Ada Lovelace
Lovelace published the world’s first computer algorithm. She collaborated with Charles Babbage in the 1800s on a computer that did not come to fruition, but Lovelace published her notes on the project in 1843. Since 2009, Ada Lovelace Day has celebrated the achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and maths, and it occurs in the UK on the second Tuesday in October. According to the website it “aims to increase the profile of women in STEM and, in doing so, create new role models who will encourage more girls into STEM careers and support women already working in STEM.”
Daphne Oram
Oram was the first person to design and build an electronic musical instrument. She also developed the Oramics machine for music production. Arguably, the techniques she developed for tape-manipulation techniques continue to influence today’s artists. In the UK, the Oram Awards were named in honor. According to the awards website, they are in partnership with The Radiophonic Institute, PRS Foundation and the Daphne Oram Trust: “The Oram Awards is a platform for innovation in sound, music and related technologies to elevate the work and voices of women, trans and non-binary and gender expansive music creators.”
Radia Perlman, PhD
Holding a BS and MS in Mathematics and a PhD in computer science (MIT), Perlman developed Spanning Tree Protocol (SPT) for Ethernet, making it possible to create massive mesh networks. Perlman also developed the TRansparent Interconnection of Lots of Links (TRILL) standard for data center connectivity. According to LinkedIn, she is currently an EMC Fellow at Dell.
Maria Telkes, PhD
Along with architect Eleanor Raymond, Telkes built the first solar-powered home in 1947. She held a PhD in physical chemistry and from 1939 to 1953 worked on solar energy research at MIT. In 1953, Telkes built the first thermoelectric refrigerator using the principles of semiconductor thermoelectricity. She was issued seven US patents during her career.
Happening Now!
There are numerous celebrations for women in STEM around the world, such as the Grace Hopper Celebration and Ada Lovelace Day mentioned above. In same spirit, Samtec is sponsoring the Women in Microwaves events at the upcoming IMS2024 in Washington DC, as well as Women in Electronics: “a community of progressive leaders at all stages of their careers dedicated to expanding the opportunities for women in the electronics industry, industrial industry, and related markets.” We hope you will explore these organizations for more information.
Photo credits: Smith Collection Gado Getty Images (Annie Easley); Daphne Oram (BBC); Shirely Jackson (Shirley Jackson); Katherine Burr Blodgett (Emilio Segre); Margaret Sarah Carpenter (Ada Lovelace, 1836); www.maryloujepsen.com (Mary Lou Jepsen); Radia Perlman (wikimedia); cover image, Ada Lovelace Day (findingada.com).
More Information:
Empowering Women into STEM Fields – The Samtec Blog
‘Most Beautiful Woman’ By Day, Inventor By Night : NPR
Famous Women in Technology: 10 Female Technology Inventors To Know | BizTech Magazine
15 of the most important women in tech who changed the world | Mashable
Annie Easley, Computer Scientist – NASA
Celebrating the Mothers of Technology | Mr. Electric Blog (mrelectric.com)
51 Female Inventors and Inventions That Changed the World – Interesting Engineering
Leave a Reply