STEAMing Up Learning

• Real life Mountain Man

• Discovered and mapped the Beckwourth Trail (still used today by hikers through the Sierra Nevada Mountains)

• Beckwourth Pass is named after him

• Served as a scout and guide for the U.S. Army

• Became a War Chief of the Crow Nation

Who is James E. West?

• Holds over 250 patents for Microphones production and design

• Worked on a device to detect pneumonia

• His mother was one of the renowned “Hidden Figures”

• Was electrocuted at 8 years old

• Never graduated from college

• Was interested in the Black Panthers

Who is Percy Julian?

• Obtained more than 130 patents 

• Created a process to synthesize a drug used to treat glaucoma

• Sold his company Julian Laboratories to pharmaceutical giant Smith, Kline & French for more than $2.2 million in 1961 (approximately $22 million today)

•  Grandson of former slaves

• Honored on USPS Black Heritage Stamp in 1993

Who is Patricia Bath?

• Invented technology to remove cataracts

• First African-American to complete a residency in ophthalmology

• First African-American female doctor to receive a medical patent

• Derived a mathematical equation for predicting cancer cell growth as a 16-year-old

• Graduated from high school in only two years

Who is Charles Drew?

• Invented blood banks

• Columbia University’s 1st Black D.Sc.

• Created bloodmobiles

• Refused orders from US War Department to separate people's blood by race

Who is Dr. Ayanna Howard?

• Most Senior African-American Woman In Robotics In the USA

• Focuses on human-centered robotics

• Was inspired by the TV show “The Bionic Woman”

• Wanted to go to medical school

• Developed the next generation Mars Rover

Who is Alexander Miles?

• Inventor of Automatic Elevator

• Barber and Barbershop Owner

• Invented Hair Care Products

• Real Estate Mogul

• Provided Insurance to Black People

Who is Otis Boykin?

• Invented the wire precision resistor

• Invented a burglar-proof cash register

• Invented a resistor used in US military guided missiles

• Invented resistor control units that were built into IBM computers

• Invented a control unit for the pacemaker.

Today we are going to take a trip through history and explore some of the most brilliant Black minds in the world of mathematics. Get ready to be inspired and amazed as we learn about some incredible mathematicians and their groundbreaking contributions. From the early 1800's, to the days of the civil rights movement, to the present, these mathematicians have made a huge impact in the field and beyond!

Benjamin Banneker was a man ahead of his time. Born in Maryland in 1731 to free parents, he was an American astronomer, mathematician, surveyor and so much more. Despite facing significant obstacles due to his race and lack of formal education, Banneker made significant contributions to science and society during his lifetime.

David Blackwell was a pioneer in the field of statistics and the mathematical foundations of game theory, which is the study of how and why people make decisions. He was the first African-American inducted into the National Academy of Sciences, the first African-American tenured faculty member at the University of California, Berkeley, and the seventh African-American to receive a Ph.D. in Mathematics.

Haynes began her career as a teacher and quickly realized that there were few resources available to help her teach mathematics to her students. Consequently, she decided to pursue advanced education in mathematics in order to develop her own teaching materials. Haynes' research and teaching materials were not only influential in the field of mathematics education but also in the field of mathematical logic.