Rise of the Rocket Girls | Nathalia Holt | Talks at Google | Summary and Q&A

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May 20, 2016
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Talks at Google
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Rise of the Rocket Girls | Nathalia Holt | Talks at Google

TL;DR

This talk presents the untold story of female rocket science pioneers who worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, highlighting their contributions to space exploration and the challenges they faced.

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Key Insights

  • πŸ‘©β€βš•οΈ Women played a crucial role in early rocket science, working as computers before the digital era.
  • πŸ€¦β€β™€οΈ The women at JPL made significant contributions to space exploration, despite facing gender biases and limited career options.
  • πŸ™‡β€β™€οΈ These women fostered a supportive and inclusive culture at JPL, where male colleagues respected and valued their work.
  • πŸ‘Ύ Their contributions to missions like Explorer 1 and Voyager shaped the future of space exploration.
  • πŸ•΅οΈβ€β™€οΈ The story of these female pioneers serves as inspiration for women interested in pursuing careers in science and technology today.
  • πŸ§”β€β™€οΈ Programs that promote diversity and create opportunities for women can help address the decline in women graduating with computer science degrees.

Transcript

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Questions & Answers

Q: How did these women overcome gender norms and become engineers at JPL?

While women at other NASA centers lost their jobs when computers were introduced, the women at JPL became computer programmers and engineers. They were valued and trusted by their male colleagues, which allowed them to continue their careers at JPL.

Q: How did maternity leave and motherhood impact these women's careers at JPL?

Maternity leave was not offered at that time, so many women had to hide their pregnancies and face the risk of not being able to return to work. However, some women, like Helen Ling, worked to create a culture of working mothers at JPL, allowing women to balance their careers and families.

Q: Why did the number of women graduating with computer science degrees decrease over the years?

There isn't a straightforward answer to this, but it is believed that a combination of factors, such as a lack of female role models and changes in introductory computer science courses, could contribute to the decline. Programs that promote diversity and provide support to women in technology fields can help reverse this trend.

Q: What happened to these female pioneers after they retired from JPL?

Many of these women had long careers at JPL, with some exceeding 50 years. While most of them are now in their late 80s and early 90s, they are still active and maintain vivid memories of their work. Some of the women continue to be involved in the field and contribute to current missions, like Sylvia Miller's work on the Juno mission to Jupiter.

Summary & Key Takeaways

  • The talk discusses the historical significance of a group of women who worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

  • These women started as computers, performing calculations for early missiles, and later transitioned to working on space exploration.

  • Despite facing gender norms and limited career options for women, they made significant contributions to missions like Explorer 1 and Voyager.

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