On November 30, 1900, medical philanthropist Mary Woodward Lasker was born in Wisconsin. Several formative influences helped shape her future direction. Her father was a banker; her mother, a community activist. Lasker suffered childhood ear infections that prompted her growing interests in medical research.…
On November 6, 1771, German writer and lithographer Alois Senefelder was born. As a playwright and sometimes actor, he tried to support himself as a printer with a small printing press. In his day, illustrations were engraved on copperplate. Senefelder could not afford an…
On August 21, 1960, American professional engineer and bridge designer David Barnard Steinman died. Since childhood, he had loved bridges and the colossal integrated parts that support them. Steinman pursued the studies in mathematics related to bridge building with a doctoral thesis that became…
On July 30, 1920, Marie Tharp was born in Ypsilanti, Michigan. A pioneering oceanographic cartographer, she mapped the ocean floor and co-discovered the Mid-Oceanic Ridges, along with her colleague Bruce Heezen, Columbia University’s team leader of ocean ridge mapping. As they worked down the…
On July 24, 1843, chemist, photographer, and astronomer Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney was born. Raised in a family and circle of friends all interested in photography, Abney, like many members of photographic clubs and societies, experimented with film and its chemistry. In at…
Wow! Some incredible Flyby! Have we been following this? You bet! THEN… keep current with great mission insights, video, and terrific special features of the New Horizons spacecraft on its New Horizons Mission page. WHERE is New Horizons right now?Check out NASA’s track of…
On June 7, 1909, American obstetric anesthesiologist Dr. Virginia Apgar was born in New Jersey. She was a leader in the fields of anesthesiology and teratology, and effectively founded the field of neonatology. At a time when fetal monitors had not been invented, she…
On May 23, 1707, Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist Carolus (Carl) Linnaeus was born. He laid the foundation for the modern scheme of taxonomy, the classification of plants and animals. When Linnaeus studied medicine, botany was an important part of medical studies because doctors…
On February 27, 1869, American physician, bacteriologist, and industrial medicine expert Dr. Alice Hamilton was born. She was one well-prepared doctor. Hamilton graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School, pursued internships at hospitals for women and children, and then bacteriology and pathology at…
On August 1, 1905, Helen Battles Sawyer Hogg, CC was born. A childhood sighting of Halley’s Comet thrilled her and ignited her fascination with astronomy. Later, astronomer Annie Jump Cannon’s visit during college cemented Hogg’s decision to stick with astronomy and turned into her…