Life has changed an awful lot over the last century.
Decades of innovation have given us everything from cheap medicines to space satellites to the computer you’re reading this article on.
Overcoming social and workplace barriers, Black scientists and inventors have spearheaded progress in many of these fields.
From agriculture to medicine to mathematics, our lives would not be the same without these innovations.
Here are just a few of the most important discoveries and inventions made by Black scientists over the last century.
1922: 150+ uses for sweet potato
Botanist and agricultural scientist Dr George Washington Carver discovered hundreds of novel uses for everyday plants.
In 1922, he published recipes for more than 150 products made from the humble sweet potato: from dyes to synthetic silk to after dinner mints.
Born to former slaves in Missouri in 1864 Missouri, USA, Carver became one of the most prominent Black scientists of the twentieth century. An environmentalist and humanitarian, he promoted more sustainable agricultural practices in free brochures for farmers.
1923: Traffic signalling
American inventor Garrett Morgan patented a three-light traffic signal back in the 1920s.
Most earlier traffic signals had only two lights — one for ‘stop’ and one for ‘go’. Garrett reportedly had the idea for a third ‘warning’ signal after seeing a car accident at a junction.
Other inventors created similar signalling systems around the same time, with Garretts’ eventually being snapped up by General Electric for $40,000 (around $610,000 in today’s money).
1938: Refridgerated trucks
In the late 1930s, self-taught mechanic Frederick McKinley Jones developed portable air conditioning units that could keep perishable goods fresh during long truck journeys.
He later formed a company — Thermo King — with business partner Joseph A Numero that would go on to be worth millions of dollars.
1940: Blood storage and transportation
American surgeon and blood expert Charles Richard Drew developed early techniques for extracting, testing and transporting blood plasma safely.
During World War II, he led the ‘Blood for Britain’ scheme, which enabled 15,000 people at hospitals across the US to donate plasma for civilian and military use.
He went on to introduce refridgerated ‘bloodmobiles’ as director of the National Blood Bank, but soon left the organisation over its policy of racially segregating blood.
1940s: Synthetic medicines
Black chemist Percy Lavon Julian became the first person to synthesise a glaucoma drug called physostigmine, reducing its cost and enabling production at a much greater scale.
Julian pioneered the synthesis of medicines from plants, making production more reliable and dramatically reducing drug costs.
As well as glaucoma medicine, he helped develop methods to synthesise steroids and the hormone progesterone, which is commonly used in birth control pills.
1956: Telephone cable insulation
Polymer chemistry expert Walter Lincoln Hawkins developed a plastic coating for telephone cables with colleague Vincent Lanza. Their durable innovation provided long-lasting protection for phone lines, reducing the need for thick, expensive lead coatings.
Not only did this make life easier for phone companies, but it helped reduce the cost of services for consumers.
Recognising the costs of such durability to the environment, Hawkins also went on to become an expert in plastic recycling.
1960s: Mathematical analysis & coding for spaceflight
In the 1960s, Black mathematicians including Katherine Johnson and Annie Easley worked as ‘computers’ for Nasa: highly skilled researchers who helped hone complex models enabling space exploration.
Johnson’s research facilitated numerous landmark spaceflights from John Glenn’s orbit of Earth in 1962 to the Apollo moon missions.
Easley went on to become a computer scientist, creating code for energy conversion systems and hybrid power technology like the batteries used in the Centaur upper-stage rocket.
1962: Microphone technology
American inventor James E West developed a new kind of microphone technology with his colleague Gerhard Sessler back in 1962.
Today, this ‘foil electret’ tech still forms the basis of most microphones sold around the world.
The mics contain a magnetically charged material — in this case, thin Teflon foil — that removes the need for a polarising power supply.
A serial inventor, Dr West went on to patent more than 250 ideas.
1966: Home security systems
Nurse Mary Van Brittan Brown developed a home security system to help her feel safer in her New York apartment while her electrician husband was working late nights.
She used a series of peepholes, cameras and TV screens to create the first ever closed circuit television system, allowing her to see who was at the door without having to open it. She filed a patent for the system with her husband in 1966.
Later upgraded to include a switch that could unlock a door remotely and a button to contact emergency services, the system was a precursor to those used today in many apartment buildings and businesses.
1970s: GPS
Another pioneering mathemetician and computer programmer, Gladys West led the team behind the US Air Force’s ‘Seasat’ radar altimetry project.
This ocean-monitoring satellite needed an accurate mathematical model of Earth: something West created by programming what was then a highly advanced IBM computer.
The model she produced lay the foundations for what would become the Global Positioning System or GPS.
1980s & 90s: Computers, chips and monitors
While working at IBM, computer engineer Mark Dean helped develop the company’s landmark personal computer, the colour monitor and the first one-gigahertz processor.
These early innovations helped turn computers into a staple household object found in homes around the world.
Able to perform a billion calculations a second, the processing chip he helped create in 1999 dramatically sped up these devices.
1990s & 2000s: Space instruments
British scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock has developed and helped develop a host of telescopic instruments that have helped astronomers explore the far reaches of space.
From a spectrograph for the Gemini telescope in Chile to observation instruments for the European Space Agency’s wind-tracking Aeolus mission, her work helps scientists probe both space itself and conditions down on Earth.
Passionate about science communication, Dr Aderin-Pocock has also co-presented the BBC’s The Sky at Night since 2014.
2000s: Complex cost models
Top British mathematician Nira Chamberlain has worked extensively on complex mathematical models with real-world applications.
Back in the 2000s, he produced a sophisticated cost capability trade-off model that helped officials justify investment in the multi-billion pound war ship the HMS Queen Elizabeth.
Dr Chamberlain went on to be the first Black British mathematician to be included in the Who’s Who catalogue of notable individuals.
2000s to the present: Superstring theory and particle physics
British theoretical physicist Prof Clifford Johnson has advanced scientific concepts like ‘superstring theory’.
This system tries to explain every force and particle in the universe according to a model of tiny, supersymmetrical vibrating strings.
In 2005 he won the early career Maxwell Medal and Prize for his ‘outstanding contribution’ to numerous areas of physics: ‘string theory, quantum gravity and its interface with strongly coupled field theory, the censorship of singularities and the thermodynamic properties of quantum spacetime.’
Complicated as topics may seem, they all contribute to our understanding of space, time and the universe around us.
Black History Month
October marks Black History Month, which reflects on the achievements, cultures and contributions of Black people in the UK and across the globe, as well as educating others about the diverse history of those from African and Caribbean descent.
For more information about the events and celebrations that are taking place this year, visit the official Black History Month website.
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