Adafruit's Featured Scientists, Makers and Engineers

Carolina Eyck: Check out this awesome performance on BBC's Radio 3 from world renowned theremin player and composer Carolina Eyck.

S.B. Divya As well as being a writer, S.B. Divya has worked as an EE for 20 years. She spoke with IEEE Spectrum about her career.

Dr. Yejin Choi Dr. Choi, a professor at UW's School of Computer Science & Engineering and researcher at the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence, spoke to The New York Times about AI.

Dame Mary Cartwright : Mathematician Dame Mary Cartwright would be 122. Celebrate with the UK Science Museum

Maria Tharp: Marie Tharp used data and mapping techniques to prove the existence of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and its Rift Valley.

Mária Telkes: Dr. Telkes, an early and prominent figure working with solar energy, was recently celebrated with her own Google Doodle.

Ada Lovelace: December 10th was Ada Lovelace's birthday! See how we celebrated.

Charitie Ropati: Ropati is a student and co-founder of Lil Native Girl in STEM.

Nicole Mann: In October Mann became the first Native woman to go to space! More from NPR

Yvonne Clark: Yvonne Y. Clark is the first woman to get a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering at Howard University, and the first woman to earn a master’s degree in Engineering Management from Vanderbilt University.

Sabrina Thompson Sabrina Thompson is combining fashion and STEM to change space flight for women.

Barbara Liskov: A recipient of both the Turing Award and the IEEE John von Neumann Medal, Barbara Liskov is one of America’s most prominent computer scientists.

Dr. Ngalula Mubenga: Dr. Mubenga's research areas include renewable energies, lithium ion battery management systems, and energy storage systems.

Jamie Sarai Margolin is a climate justice activist

Sabrina Gonzalez Pastersk: She is currently a theoretical physicist and at 16 she built her own airplane…and then flew it! Learn more!

Becky Stern : Former Adafruit Director of Wearable Electronics Becky Stern has a new video series that she’s doing for Digi-Key, also see Becky’s work at Adafruit on the Adafruit Learning System.

Devon aka MechanicalFiend: We are really into the miniatures Devon (aka MechanicalFiend on YouTube) creates, especially her most recent build of Jack Skellington's House from Nightmare Before Christmas.

Meet Shawna Broussard, Shaun Phillips, Linda Brewster, Deanna Whitehead, and Marlyn Terek who engineered NASA’s return to the Moon!

Bukola Somide: The creator of the first-to-market African American interactive STEM doll helping Black children learn about computer science. Learn more!

Maker Melissa: Join Adafruit's own Maker Melissa on her first ever livestream and view her Adafruit Learn Guides here.

Ellen Stofan: Ellen Stofan is Under Secretary for Science and Research at The Smithsonian, She was previously chief scientist at NASA and was the first woman to hold the position of John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum. Learn more at the Smithsonian and NASA!

Nia Asemota: To help the next generation pursue STEM, Asemota, who is now a current computer science and biology major at New York University and a Black Girls CODE technical instructor, created “Black Girls CODE the Future” — an educational coloring book that empowers women of color to pursue the tech world.

Gullara McInnes: In high school, Gullara McInnes started Mareeba State High School’s Drone Club and created a guide for other students, 3 Steps for Starting a Drone Education Club at Your School. Now, as a student at James Cook University, McInnes is utilizing her drone skills to enable local Elders to identify traditional sites! Read more.

Elisa Leonida Zamfirescu: Born in 1887, Elisa Leonida Zamfirescu worked as an assistant at the Geological Institute of Romania and also taught physics and chemistry. She was the first woman member of A.G.I.R. (General Association of Romanian Engineers) setting the world record for being the World's First Female Chemical Engineer, according to the Academy Of World Records. Learn more at World record academy and Europeana

Jane Rigby: Speaking of the JWST, Dr. Jane Rigby is the Project Scientist for Operations for the James Webb Space Telescope. See more from NASA

Enedina Alves Marques : Marques was the first black woman to be an engineer in Brazil. Throughout her career she championed for women's equality. Learn more from Face 2 Face Africa

Dr Irene Samy Fahim: Dr Fahim is an associate professor of Industrial and Service Engineering and Management and the leader for the industrial and manufacturing track in the Smart Engineering systems research center at Nile University. Some of Dr Fahim’s work focuses on fabricating new bioplastic composites and green energy in construction, LEED and green building certification. Learn more at BBC, The National, The American University in Cairo, ResearchGate, IEEE and Women in Science.

Lynn Ann Conway: Not only is Lynn Conway a pioneering computer scientist whose innovations are still used to improve the performance of smartphones and computers we use today, she also has a lasting legacy as a trans activist working to protect and expand the rights of transgender people. Learn more on her website, Wikipedia, NOW and NY Times!

Anna Du Anna Du is the creator of the Deep Plastic Initiative and author of Microplastics and Me.

Delia Derbyshire: Derbyshire is the sound engineer who helped design the iconic Doctor Who theme. See more from the BBC and don’t miss Arena’s docudrama, Delia Derbyshire: The Myths and the Legendary Tapes

Dr. Katherine Luzuriaga: Katherine Luzuriaga, MD, is a Filipino American scientist and physician on the cutting edge of research on how viruses like HIV and the Epstein Barr virus infect children. She is also the Director of the University of Massachusetts Center for Clinical and Translational Science. Read more about her work on the UMass Med School website.

Wendy Froud: Dubbed the Mother of Yoda, Wendy Froud is one of the greatest living puppeteers. Her artistry and vision has helped bring so many wonderful characters to life. Check out this recent piece from the inverse to learn more about her.

Dr. Isabella Kauakea Yau Yung Aiona Abbott: Dr Abbott was the first Native Hawai’ian woman to earn a PhD in science. The foremost expert on Central-Pacitic algae, she is also one of the world’s foremost authorities on limu — the more than 70 edible varieties of seaweed.

Loe Lee: Loe Lee is incredible artist out of New York City who recently designed Google’s 2022 AAPI Month digital hub theme. See more of her awesome work at her site and from Google!

Susan Solomon: Susan Solomon is an atmospheric chemist, with much of her career spent at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In 2011, Solomon joined MIT, where she serves as the Ellen Swallow Richards Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry & Climate Science. Solomon, with her colleagues, was the first to propose that the chlorofluorocarbon free radical reaction mechanism is the cause of the Antarctic ozone hole. Learn more via Wikipedia and the National Women’s Hall of Fame

Heba Kadry Mastering Engineers don’t always get the spotlight, but the impact they have on the final product in undeniable. Read more from Pitchfork and HebaKadry.com

Cassie Moreira: This week we are celebrating the work of Robotics Technician Cassie Moreira, who works at Boston Dynamics. We recently featured Cassie on our blog here. There's also a great piece from digitaltrends that highlights Cassie and her career path.

Deb Nicholson: The Python Software Foundation (PSF), the non-profit home of the Python programming language community, welcomes Deb Nicholson as its new Executive Director. Learn more!

Ida Rhodes: Ida Rhodes was born in Ukraine and emigrated to the United States as a teenager, she was an amazing pioneer in computing, helping develop the C-10 language and designing the original computer program used by the Social Security Administration, Learn more at PCMAG

Alice Augusta Ball: Early 20th Century chemist Alice Ball discovered a leprosy treatment that was widely used for many years. A male scientist took credit for her work. Read about her work and life here from the Smithsonian.

Dr. Emma Pierson: Dr. Emma Pierson studies inequality and healthcare using data science and machine learning methods.

Dr. Kaitlyn Sadtler : Dr. Kaitlyn Sadtler is an immunologist and bioengineer at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering who helped develop the first antibody test that could determine how many people had been infected with COVID-19. Learn more!

Dr. Shelley Ackerman: Dr. Shelley Ackerman is a biological engineer focused on therapies for historically difficult to treat cancers. Read more from Stat News, MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35, Stanford Bio-X and follow @ShelleyAckPhD

Norma Merrick Sklarek: Norma Merrick Sklarek (1926–2012) was the first African American woman in the country to become a licensed architect. Here are some highlights from her amazing career, via The American Institute of Architects

Daisy Gatson Bates Daisy Lee Gatson Bates was a civil rights activist who played an integral role in the integration of Arkansas schools. She was a mentor to the Little Rock Nine, she and her husband also published the Arkansas State Press a revolutionary newspaper that dealt with civil rights and other issues in the Black community.

Dajae Moe Williams: Williams is an engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and advocate for children in STEM. She uses hip hop to spread STEM eduction to all children in hopes of diversifying the fields. Learn more from dajaewilliams.com and NPR

Debra Laefer: Debra Laefer is the Director of Citizen Science program within NYU's Center for Urban Science + Progress and Associate Professor of NYU's Tandon School of Engineering. Previously a professor at University College in Dublin her research in geotechnical and structural engineering focuses on ways to preserve architecturally significant buildings from sub-surface construction. Learn more!

Zara Rutherford: Zara Rutherford landed in Belgium January 20, 2022, making her the youngest woman to fly around the world solo! Check out more details from Reuters.

Clarice Phelps: Among her many accomplishments, Phelps is the first African-American woman recognized for the discovery of an element! More from Wikipedia!

Dr. Karletta Chief Dr. Karletta Chief is a Diné hydrologist best known for her work addressing environmental pollution on the Navajo Nation and increasing the participation of Native Americans in STEM.

Valerie Aurora: Valerie Anita Aurora is a software engineer and feminist activist. She was the co-founder of the Ada Initiative, a non-profit organization that sought to increase women's participation in the free culture movement, open source technology, and open source culture. Learn more at Valerieaurora.org

Laura Kampf: German maker Laura Kampf puts out quality videos of her projects on the regular. Recently, we highlighted her portable soldering station build on our blog. We highly recommend checking out her YouTube Channel here and she also has her own website here.

Danielle Forward Danielle Forward is the founder of Natives Rising and a social impact product designer at Facebook. Read more from Medium, Natives Rising, CS Ed Week, and Computer History Museum, and check out Danielle Forward on LinkedIn, Medium and Twitter.

Bell Hooks: Trailblazing poet, professor, prolific author bell hooks passed away in her home last week. Read more from NPR

Eva Galperin: Eva Galperin is the Director of Cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation and technical advisor for the Freedom of the Press Foundation. Learn more about her important work from her TED Talk What you need to know about stalkerware.

Natalie Zee Drieu: Natalie is an author, designer, and craft enthusiast who is also the cohost of STEMChat alongside Diana Eng. You can find their STEM Chat video series on our YouTube channel - most recent video here. You can also follow Natalie on Twitter here.

Andrea Delgado-Olson This year Andrea Delgado-Olson was announced as the Executive Director of Natives in Tech team! Read more from Medium, NativesInTech.org and LinkedIn!

Elisabeth A. Holm: Elisabeth A. Holm founded SONAC (Sisterhood of Native American Coders) a non-profit that helps create a lifelong passion for STEM in Native American girls. Learn more at SONAC and the Native Learning Center.

Charlie Jane Anders: Author, journalist, and podcast host Charlie Jane Anders is one of the most fun and exciting voices on the sci-fi landscape these days. Her new book Even Greater Mistakes is out next week. Read more.

Melissa Cristina Márquez Also known as the Mother of Sharks, Melissa Cristina Márquez is a marine and shark scientist, conservationist, educator, author and science communicator. Read more from Only One, STEM Trading Cards, STEM Women, McAuliffe-Shepard Blog, Forbes, and Melissa Cristina Márquez's site, follow #STEMSaturdays, @mcmsharksxx and @melissacristinamarquez, check out The Fins United Initiative, and see more from TEDx Talks, National Geographic Education, GQ and Chris Brogan on YouTube

Akim Vann Akim Vann is a mathematician and the owner of Bakery on Bergen, a bakery that is #morethanabakery. Bakery on Bergen sells tasty treats, is focused on community and offers math classes! Read more from Thrillist, Black-Owned Brooklyn, Pix11 and Black Restaurant Week, follow @thebakeryonbergen and see more from PIX11 News and BRIC TV on YouTube.

Eva Crane : British researcher Eva Crane authored some of the most important books on bees and apiculture. Trained as a quantum mathematician with a doctorate in nuclear physics, she changed her field of interest to bees in the 1940's, and spent decades researching them! Learn more!

Xiye Bastida: She is a climate activist, co-founder of Re-Earth Initiative, an organizer of Fridays for Future New York City, is on the administration committee of the People’s Climate Movement and is a member of the Sunrise Movement and Extinction Rebellion.

Dr Sian Proctor Dr. Proctor is a geoscientist, artist and science communicator. As the pilot for the Inspiration4 mission, she is inspiration to never give up on your goals. Read more on the Adafruit blog, The New York Times, Space.com, Reuters, follow @DrSianProctor and check out Space2inspire

Ynés Mexía : Ynés Enriquetta Julietta Mexía was a Mexican-American botanist notable for her extensive collection of novel specimens of flora and plants originating from sites in Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, Learn more from NPS.org

Hilary Mason: Hilary Mason is a data scientist and Co-Founder of @HiddenDoorCo. She’s received many honors for her work in tech, including a spot on the Forbes 40 under 40. Check out this video where she explains Machine Learning for wired!

Henrietta Leavitt: An astronomer who began her career in the late 19th century, Henrietta Leavitt pursued her passion on an impressive professional level, working at the Harvard College Observatory. Although not always permitted or encouraged to work to her fullest potential, Leavitt definitely made her mark. Read more from PBS.

Rasha AlQahtani Rasha AlQahtani won this year’s Regeneron ISEF behavioral science award for her video game tool that helps diagnose generalized anxiety disorder in adolescents!

Susan Martinez: Susan Martinez is a NASA engineer who loved space from an early age. Medium talked with Martinez back in January about her career path and women in STEM, check it out!

Dr. Marie M. Daly: Marie Maynard Daly was an American biochemist. She was the first African-American woman in the United States to earn a Ph.D. in chemistry. She also started a Queens College scholarship fund to assist minority students majoring in chemistry or physics. Learn more!

Dasia Taylor: Dasia Taylor is a 17-year-old scientist from Iowa who recently developed color changing sutures designed to detect infection. Read more about Dasia Taylor and her work from her recent interview with PBS News Hour.

Dr. Leilani Battle: Dr. Leilani Battle leads the Battle Data Lab at the University of Maryland, where she is also an assistant professor. Dr. Battle’s research is focused on developing human-centered interactive tools for data science. Read more about Dr. Leilani Battle from Innovators Under 34, UMD, Linkedin and follow @leibatt

Oluwaseyi Moejoh Oluwaseyi Moejoh is a cofounder and executive director of U-recycle Initiative Africa, a law student, a National Geographic Young Explorer, a 2021 Global Teen Leader at We are Family Foundation, a High Seas Alliance Youth Ambassador, a 2020 Africave fellow, a 2020 Squad Leader at the Ocean Heroes Network and a recipient of the 2020 Youth-in-Development Fellowship by SOZO networks sponsored by the US embassy. Read more from Smithsonian Magazine and check out Oluwaseyi Moejoh’s site, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter

Vinita Marwaha Madill: Vinita is a space engineer, advocate for Women in STEM and Founder of Rocket Women. She also taught at NASA Ames Research Centre for the International Space University Space Studies Program! Learn more!

Jeri Ellsworth In this video, Jeri Ellsworth talks to Youth on the Air (a group of young amateur radio operators in the Americas) about the power of mentors, both within the Ham radio community and beyond. Besides her message, it is so inspiring to see all of the people in the comments declaring how HER mentorship and example inspired them. We recently featured her on our blog here.

Dr. Ramille Shah University of Illinois Chicago profes-sor Ramille Shah, PhD is Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Dimension Inx, LLC and has a plethora of well-deserved praise for her outstanding work in bioengineering. Read more about her and her work at Dimension Inx

Dr. Anastasia Volkova Dr. Anastasia Volkova is the cofounder of FluroSat and Regrow Ag who uses her interests in automation, efficiency and remote sensing to make the world a better place. Read more from MIT Technology Review and LinkedIn.

Dr. Leilani Battle: Dr. Battle leads the Battle Data Lab at the University of Maryland, where she is also an assistant professor. Dr. Battle’s research is focused on developing human-centered interactive tools for data science. Learn more!

Legacy Russell: The Kitchen, an institution of New York’s downtown theater scene, names their next leader in Legacy Russell. Russell is currently a curator at the Studio Museum in Harlem. It's great to see the art world pick up and keep moving! Learn more from the New York Times.

Violaine Buet Violaine Buet is a designer who makes biodegradable textiles with algae for a perfect union of fashion and sustainability.

Mary Ann Horton: Horton is a Usenet and Internet pioneer who created the first email attachment tool uuencode. Read more on the Adafruit Blog and from The Daily Beast!

Dr. Nergis Mavalvala: Dr. Nergis Mavalvala is a Pakistani-American astrophysicist known for her role in the first observation of gravitational waves. She is also the first woman to serve as dean of MIT’s School of Science. Learn more at Technology Review

Kalpana Chawla: Kalpana Chawla is an Indo-American astronaut and the first woman of Indian origin in space. We recently featured her on our blog as a part of an on-going celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. See more here.

Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya is a multidisiciplinary artist and speaker based in Brooklyn, New York. She is behind the project Beyond Curie.

Alice Wong: Alice Wong is a disabled activist who is dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture. We have learned a lot from following her on twitter and suggest everyone, especially those who are able-bodied, to do the same. See more from the Adafruit Blog, read more about her work, follow her on Twitter, and check out Disability Visibility.

Rebecca Pailes-Friedman: Pioneer of Wearable Technology, Rebeccah Pailes-Friedman is currently an Adjunct Professor at the Pratt Institute, she has over 25 years of experience designing products for athletes at companies like Nike, Champion and Fila. Learn more!

Pat Cadigan: A wonderful Sci-Fi Author, Pat Cadigan is especially beloved in the Cyberpunk community. We recently posted about a great interview Cadigan did with the folks at CyberPunk.com.

Nnedi Okorafor Nnedi Okorafor is a Africanfuturism and Africanjujuism author and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Locus awards, just to name a few. Okorafor has written a plethora of novels, novellas, comics, and short stories, some of which are available online. Her work has been featured on LeVar Burton Reads and her novel Who Fears Death is being adapted into a tv series. Okorafor did a TEDTalk in 2017 discussing her inspirations, Africanfuturism, and reading excerpts from her work.

Joye Hummel: Joye Hummel recently passed away but not before she received some of the recognition she deserved. In 1944 Joye was the first woman to write for Wonder Woman comic. Until 2014 she went unacknowledged as a ghost writer. Learn more

Joanna Russ: Joanna Russ is a prominent New Wave science fiction author, critic, and feminist. She is the author of a number of works of science fiction, fantasy and feminist literary criticism such as How to Suppress Women’s Writing. She is truly one of the great science fiction writers of the 20th century. She was also a powerful voice for feminism in a genre that did not always reward powerful voices from women. Learn more in this fantastic article on Russ from The New Yorker

Angelica Ross: Besides staring in Pose and American Horror Story, Angelica Ross is a self-taught coder and CEO of TransTech Social Enterprises.

Dr. Lili Cai Dr. Cai is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. MIT Technology Review included Dr. Cai and her work on heating and cooling nanomaterial-based textiles in their 2020 Innovators Under 35.

Dr. Karissa Culbreath: Dr. Karissa Culbreath is a clinical microbiologist, Assistant Professor of Pathology at University of New Mexico School of Medicine, author of Daddy’s Little Girl and is the Medical Director of Infectious Diseases at Tricore Reference Laboratories. Learn more!

Beatrice Tinsley: Beatrice Muriel Hill Tinsley was an astronomer and cosmologist whose research made fundamental contributions to the understanding of how galaxies evolve with time! Learn more at WomenYouShouldKnow