She was 101. No one really heard of her until the movie "Hidden Figures" came out.
Our success in the space program is one of the things that has defined us.
She was pivotal in that success, thus was one of the people who was most important in our perception of who we are and what we can achieve.
Thank you for your post.
This is pretty amazing stuff, really. It's hard to imagine that all the engineering and math done during the formative years of the space program was done with pencil, paper and a slide rule.
Godspeed
RIP Katherine. You and your amazing peers were instrumental in the success of the Apollo program.
She was a computer before computers where cool...
She and Admiral Hopper were two of the most stubborn proofs that women belong in STEM research.
I'm always encouraged for humanity that these women could and did contribute to enriching us all but disappointed that their stories weren't more widely known before their deaths.
oldopelguy said:She and Admiral Hopper were two of the most stubborn proofs that women belong in STEM research.
when I was a freshman in college in 1971 I was struggling greatly with the only calculus course I had to take. In the desk to the right of me sat Martha Lynn Morris who made 100+ on each quiz. At the beginning of the course the professor said nobody was exempt from the final. Miss Morris exempted the final. She also just happened to be very cute and a cheerleader. She definitely should have excelled at STEM.
I work with a group of guys there were part of the team that sent people to moon with a slide rule. To say these guys are smart is an understatement. And to think Katherine Johnson stood out among them is truly amazing. I am happy she lived long enough to see the accolades finally for her life's work. An amazing woman.
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