7 African Americans In STEM You Should Know
This Black History Month, the team at Xyza shares the stories behind African Americans in science and technology everyone should know!
VALERIE THOMAS, American Scientist and Inventor
Valerie Thomas turned to science with supportive teachers. She invented the basic idea behind the illusion of 3D objects — the first step to what is now called 3D movies.
KIMBERLY BRYANT, Electrical Engineer, Founder of Black Girls Code
Electrical Engineer Kimberly Bryant founded Black Girls Code when her daughter became interested in computer programming but most courses rarely had African American girls in attendance.
GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER, American Agricultural Scientist
Born before slavery was abolished, George Washington Carver developed clever techniques to help farmers better develop soil to produce a variety of crops that helped Black farmers. He was fondly known as the Peanut Man.
MAE JEMISON, American Engineer, physician, former NASA astronaut
A doctor for Peace Corps who traveled to Liberia and Sierra Leone, Mae Jemison also applied to become the first Black woman to travel into space.
SHIRLEY ANN JACKSON, American Physicist
Shirley Ann Jackson was the first African American woman to receive a doctorate degree from MIT. She developed breakthrough research that created caller ID, call waiting, solar cells and more!
VIVIEN THOMAS, American Cardiac Surgery Instructor
Vivien Thomas rose above poverty and racism to become a laboratory supervisor who developed the first procedure to treat a syndrome that affected newborns known as blue baby syndrome.
NEIL DEGRASS TYSON, American Astrophysicist, Author
Neil Degrass Tyson founded the department of Astrophysics in the American Museum of Natural History. He popularized science through TV shows and books.
