DUPONT Presents 100 Years Of Blacks In Science

Ebony, Dec, 1999

RARELY acknowledged in the celebration of American ingenuity and innovation are the contributions of the Black scientists, inventors and engineers who have enhanced life in the 20th century and helped unlock some of the mysteries of the universe.

While the extent to which Black Americans have aided in the rapid acceleration of science and technology in the past 100 years remains something of a secret beyond the cloistered world in which research is conducted, there is no denying that the enterprise and imagination of African-Americans have had a significant impact on the planet.

From George Washington Carver, the agricultural genius whose crop-growing innovations planted new seeds of hope in farms across America, to George Carruthers, the NASA astrophysicist whose development of the Far Ultraviolet Camera used on Apollo 16 offered us an enhanced view of the moon, Black researchers have charted new paths and made breakthrough discoveries that changed the everyday lives of Black and White Americans.

They are influential, if somewhat unheralded, pioneers to whom we owe a great debt for the comfort, safety and understanding of man and matter that we so often take for granted.

Medical pioneer Charles R. Drew's work with blood plasma and blood storage led to the development of the blood bank. The wheels of the moon buggy used in the lunar landing of Apollo 15 was developed by Robert E. Shurney, one of several Black scientists who made valuable contributions to NASA missions. Physicist Lloyd Quarterman was a member of the team of scientists who ushered in the atomic age by helping to develop the first nuclear reactor. George Washington Carver was the agricultural genius who single-handedly revived the economy of the post-Civil War South with his development of new farming methods.

CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF AFRICAN AMERICAN Excellence in Science

Throughout history, African-Americans have made great leaps in science. Their many inventions have helped make life easier for people everywhere, and their dreams have helped change the world. At DuPont, we're always dreaming and taking leaps, and as we approach our 200th anniversary, DuPont salutes the men and women who dare to dream, have the imagination to envision the impossible, and the determination to find the way.

AFRICAN AMERICANS

1800s

Madam C.J. Walker changes the looks of Black women by revolutionizing the hair care industry. With her hot comb, hair-growing products, a line of cosmetics, and a chain of beauty salons, she became the first self-made woman millionaire in the country.

1920s

George Washington Carver revolutionizes the economy of the South through his research in soil building and plant diseases. He developed over 300 different products including soap, milk substitute, face powder, cheese, and printer's link from peanuts.

1930s

Fredrick At. Jones changes America's eating habits with his invention of the first automatic refrigeration system for long-haul trucks. Later, the system was adapted to include ships and rail cars.

He secured over 60 patents, including a silent movie projector to accommodate talking films and box office equipment that delivers tickets and change.

1960s

James West an acoustical engineer co-invents the foil-electric microphone with Gerhard M. Sassier. Commercial production of the microphone begins in 1968 and revolutionizes the broadcasting industry.

1980s

DuPont scientist Dotsevi Y. Sogah along with Owen Webster and William B. Farnham, secures the patent for a new process for making polymers and petroleum compounds essential in the manufacturing of plastic paints and synthetic fibers.

1990

Ophthalmologist Dr. Patricia E. Bath continues to revolutionize cataract surgery through her laser device called the Laserphaco Probe. She has four potents on this probe from the United States, Canada, Japan, and Europe.

1994

Dr. Francine Bowden Essien conducts research on embryonic animal cells, helping modern medicine decipher the basic processes by which human muscle cells differentiate, and the spinal cord forms. This is a major milestone in the crusade to prevent birth defects, and will have increasing importance in the drive to restore seriously injured patients to full function.

1998

Philip Emeagwali continues to invent methods for making computers faster and more powerful. These methods enables him to perform the world's fastest computer computation per second. Today, his computers are being used to predict future global warming and forecast the weather.

1999

Demetris R. Henderson makes significant contributions to the printing industry and greatly impacts the modernization of American paper currency.

DUPONT

1800s

DuPont is founded in 1802 to manufacture safe and reliable black powder. Results in guns and explosives that go off when they are supposed to, and in the manner desired--one of "The miracles of science[TM]" in the early 1800s.

1920s

By reducing the amount of time required to paint a car from weeks to hours, Duco nitrocellulose lacquer makes Henry Ford's modern assembly line possible. With 21 colors, the fast-drying DuPont lacquer gives car buyers a rainbow of alternatives to Ford's "any color you want as long as it's black" palette.