Search results
- George Washington Carver (1864-1943) Who Was George Washington Carver? Born into slavery in 1864, George Washington Carver is best known for his innovations in farming, soil restoration and peanuts.
- Charles R. Drew (1904- 1950) Who Was Charles R. Drew? One of the most prominent surgeons of the early-20th century — as well as African American scientists in history — Charles R. Drew is remembered as the creator of the blood bank, the first director of the American Red Cross and the first Black man to earn a doctorate from Columbia University.
- Katherine Johnson (1918-2020) Who Was Katherine Johnson? Katherine Johnson, a prominent mathematician, is one of the first Black women to work as a NASA scientist.
- Ernest Everett Just (1883-1941) Who Was Ernest Everett Just? Ernest Everett Just is best known for his work in biology and marine animal fertilization.
- Charles Henry Turner | Discovered Animals Can Have Complex Thoughts
- Gladys West | Mathematician Who Gave Us GPS
- Percy Lavon Julian | Made Pain Relief Affordable
- Sophia B. Jones | Pioneer in Public Health
- Elijah Mccoy | Inventor Who Revolutionized The Railroad
- Alice Ball | Developed The First Treatment For Leprosy
- Charles Lightfoot Roman | Helped Make Workplaces Safe
Charles Henry Turner (1867 – 1923) was a biologist, neurologist, and psychologist who was a pioneer in animal cognition studies. He was one of the first African Americans to earn a PhD from the University of Chicago, and in 1892, was the first Black scientist to be published in Science, the prestigious journal of the American Association for the Ad...
Gladys West (1930 – present) is a mathematician whose extremely detailed model of the Earth became the foundation of GPS that is used today in countless applications, including navigation and communication. Born in 1930 in a small community in Virginia, West fantasized about escaping rural life, and felt that education was her only way out. She ear...
Percy L. Julian (1899 – 1975) was a chemist who discovered innovative and cost-effective ways to synthesize steroids. Despite Black people being denied education past eighth grade in his home state of Alabama, Julian was accepted to DePauw University in Indiana and took high school courses concurrently with his university courses to catch up. As th...
Sophia B. Jones (1857 – 1932)became the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Michigan's Medical School in 1885, and dedicated her career to fighting for health equity for Black people. Born in Chatham, Ont., Jones was fascinated by science, and wanted to study medicine from a young age. But she could not access full medical training...
The son of slaves who had fled to Canada via the Underground Railroad, Elijah McCoy (1844 – 1929) was a passionate inventor, who ended up with 57 patents — 50 of which were related to the lubrication of steam engines— as well as a folding ironing board and a lawn sprinkler. Facing educational barriers in Canada, McCoy was sent to Edinburgh, Scotlan...
Alice Ball (1892 – 1916) became the first Black person and the first woman to earn a master's degree in chemistry at the College of Hawaii.In her short life, she developed the first effective treatment for leprosy, a bacterial infection that has affected humans for thousands of years. While working towards her degree in pharmaceutical chemistry at ...
Charles Lightfoot Roman (1889 – 1961) was not only one of the first Black Canadians to graduate from McGill University's Faculty of Medicine, he also was a pioneer in what eventually became the field of industrial medicine, specializing in the study and prevention of workplace accidents. The grandson of a slave who came to Canada through the Underg...
- Alice Ball, chemist (1892-1916) Alice Ball was a chemist who developed an injectable treatment for leprosy. (Biography) Interested in chemistry and medicine?
- Benjamin Banneker, mathematician and astronomer (1731-1806) Benjamin Banneker was a mathematician and astronomer. Stories about Banneker include a range of science details, including a clock he carved from wood (possibly the first clock in the U.S.)
- Patricia Bath, ophthalmologist (1942-2019) Patricia Bath was an ophthalmologist who developed laser technology used in treating cataracts. (Biography)
- Guion Bluford, astronaut and aerospace engineer (1942-) Guion Bluford was the first African American in space on the Challenger's eighth (STS-8) space shuttle mission (1983).
- Dr. Juan Gilbert. In response to legislation that promoted voting accessibility, Dr. Juan Gilbert invented the Prime III – a universally-designed, touch-screen-accessible voting system that any voter can use, regardless of mobility, vision, or hearing impairments.
- Dr. Marian Rogers Croak. Dr. Marian Rogers Croak is a pioneer in Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), which allows phone calls and other voice traffic to travel using the internet, and the inventor of text-to-donate technology.
- Elijah J. McCoy. Known for his excellent workmanship, Elijah J. McCoy was a Canadian-American engineer and inventor. He received his first patent in 1873 for the automatic engine lubricator, a device that automatically lubricated steam engines in ships, trains, and factory equipment.
- Marie Van Brittan Brown. Marie Van Brittan Brown invented the first home security system in 1966. Patented in 1969, Brown’s invention pioneered the CCTV security system and paved the way for the security systems used across society today.
- Charles Drew (1904-1950) Dr. Charles Drew was a brilliant, pioneering doctor who developed new methods for storing blood for transfusions and created the first blood bank.
- Rebecca Lee Crumpler (1831-1895) Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler was the first African American woman to earn a medical degree. She also wrote one of the country's early medical textbooks, a guide for women and children entitled the "Book of Medical Discourses."
- Daniel Hale Williams (1856 - 1931) Dr. Daniel Hale Williams was the first cardiologist to successfully perform a tricky open heart surgery — the repair of the pericardium, the thin sac that encases the heart.
- Patricia Bath (1942-2019) Dr. Patricia Bath was an American ophthalmologist and laser scientist. Bath became the first female ophthalmologist to be appointed to the faculty of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Medicine Jules Stein Eye Institute, in 1974; the first woman to chair an ophthalmology residency program in the United States, in 1983; and the first female African American physician to receive a patent for a medical invention, in 1986.
Scientists, engineers, and inventors find the solutions to the world's problems. Learn about the work that these Black scientists and inventors have accomplished that make our lives better.
Oct 6, 2021 · Celebrating innovation in the face of adversity, here are 10 black pioneers of science who, along with their inventions and innovations, have changed the world. 1. Mary Seacole
