Katherine Johnson, NASA Space Scientist 

Born in 1918, Katherine Johnson, graduated from university at 18. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015 for a lifetime of work as a pioneering physicist, mathematician and space scientist. She and her colleagues, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson did the calculations that guided NASA’s 1962 Friendship 7 Mission. A teacher and research mathematician, she co-authored over 25 scientific papers.  Can you imagine how rare this brainy young teen was, entering West Virginia State College in 1932? About as unique as an African American woman scientist at NASA in the 1950s. She was both—making her the rarest of the rare!

Shauna Gammon, Ayogo’s Lead Product Designer:

“I am so grateful that Katherine Johnson helped pave the way for women like me to pursue careers in mathematics and technology. Katherine’s accomplishments are astounding, as was her graceful self-assurance that she belonged wherever her abilities carried her.”

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace & Mathematician

Ayogo UX Designer, Kelsey Hemphill did the beautiful portraits for this blog. She chose to honour Augusta Ada King, who is best known for writing the first computer algorithm during her collaboration with Charles Babbage on the Analytical Engine.

Kelsey on Countess King:

“Ada’s mother prioritized her mathematical education, hoping to steer Ada away from the ‘mad, bad and dangerous‘ poetic tendencies of her father, Lord Byron. It’s funny, but it also speaks to what ladies can do when they have the support and the resources!”

Radia Perlman, Internet Pioneer

Radia Perlman disapproves when people call her The Mother of the Internet. But as an early computer scientist and student of MIT in the 60’s she became an internet pioneer, developing the algorithm behind the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), an innovation that made today’s Internet possible. She also invented TRILL to correct the limitations of STP. A wildly creative thinker, Dr. Perlman even developed a child-friendly programming language used by children as young as 3. She authored a textbook on networking and network security and holds more than 100 issued patents.

Mala Srivatsa, Ayogo’s Director of Client Services on Radia as her inspiration:

“Radia is a shining example of how hard work and determination can lead to technical breakthroughs and success in a fast-paced and changing industry. She’s pragmatic about gender in the workplace; her quote about “picking the wrong battles” in this article really resonated with me—so many women don’t necessarily want to raise a pink flag and wave it around, it’s more about the subtle imbalances and levelling of the playing field for equality across all diversity factors. And as a bonus story, one of my former colleagues sat next to her on a plane ride and they got to chat about her personal stories and first-hand experiences during those history-making years!”

Rebecca Cole, MD

Rebecca Cole graduated from medical school in 1867 and became a public health advocate, physician and hygiene reformer in the US. An evidence-based researcher, she took issue with the biased data used to conclude that a lack of hygiene was the cause of inner city families’ high death rate from consumption. Although few records remain, we know she opened the Women’s Directory Center with Charlotte Abbey, providing medical and legal services to destitute women, was appointed Superintendent of a Home and was the esteemed colleague of the first US-educated female doctor, Elizabeth Blackwell.

Ayogo number cruncher, Kristel Co So shares her admiration of Dr Cole:

“Dr. Cole finished medical school in 1867, the second black woman to do so. For 50 years, she worked hard as a doctor and public health educator while raising 5 kids. She called people on dangerous misinformation, using her own data to back her opinions up. This woman’s legacy is huge. Her peers said her cheerful optimism created an atmosphere of sunshine that made everyone happy. I wish I knew her.”

Susan Kare, Iconographer

We don’t often think about the people who make our screen experiences work so well. But there is one iconic (ahem) designer that Ayogo’s Maddy Bazett chose as an inspirational woman in technology. Susan Kare is a digital designer’s designer. If you have used the fonts Chicago, Geneva or Monaco, you have benefited from Kare’s excellent eye. Her most well-known icons include the Macintosh trash can, the scissors, the pointing “paste” hand, and the formatting paintbrush. What a legacy.

“She is a pioneering and influential computer iconographer. Since 1983, Kare has designed thousands of icons for the world’s leading software companies. Utilizing a minimalist grid of pixels and constructed with mosaic-like precision, her icons communicate their function immediately and memorably, with wit and style,” wrote the Museum of Modern Art in New York.