Before John Glenn orbited the earth or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space. Among these problem-solvers were a group of four exceptionally talented African American women--Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden. Originally relegated to teaching math in the South's segregated public schools, they were called into service during the labor shortages of World War II. Suddenly, these overlooked math whizzes had a shot at jobs worthy of their skills, and they answered Uncle Sam's call, moving to Hampton, Virginia and the fascinating, high-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory."--Adapted from publisher website.
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