Katherine Johnson

“Cyclops, if ever mortal man inquire/how you were put to shame and blinded, tell him/Odysseus, raider of cities, took your eye: Laertes' son, whose home’s on Ithaca!” Odysseus boasts in Homer’s Odyssey (Homer lines 416-419), having just rescued his crew from the terrible monster. Odysseus’ renowned triumph over the flesh-eating monster Cyclops has lasted throughout time and is a primary example of cultural heroism in humanity's hero-dependent culture. We rely on heroes such as Odysseus to provide us role models and inspiration as they conquer obstacle after obstacle. Odysseus embodies our admired traits such as courage, strength, and wit to overcome obstacles and save the day. Odysseus is, undeniably, the epitome of civilization’s hero; someone who uses their natural gifts or earned skill set to help others. Although the monster-hunting demigods of Greek mythology may seem absurd for today’s society, modern pop culture echoes the same core traits of a hero: unrealistically gifted humanitarians saving the world from yet another deadly catastrophe. Our media is a reflection of the public’s beliefs and values that are blown up to an extreme scale, making it difficult for us to find the hero within each other. Whether it’s Captain America or Odysseus, people seek out characteristics that qualify someone as a hero; we often overlook the heroes walking our streets every day. Anyone, no matter how infrequent or insignificant the act, is a hero as long as they help someone with what resources they have. These resources can be anything, from physical characteristics such as strength to personality characteristics such as selflessness, depending on the assets of the individual.

Katherine Johnson outside Langley’s Katherine Johnson Computational Research Facilitywww.nasa.govOut of the hundreds of heroes that help others every day, some individuals catch the media’s attention for their outstanding characteristics. Katherine Johnson is one of those individuals whose hard work and resilience reaches the headlines. Katherine Johnson, also referred to as Katherine Goble before her second marriage, was born in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia on August 26, 1918. From a young age, Johnson was noticed as exceptionally intelligent, starting high school at age ten and West Virginia State College at fifteen, which was extremely unusual for an African-American girl before the Civil Rights Movement. Johnson’s endlessly inquisitive personality and mathematical genius allowed her to take specialized math courses to become a mathematician. Johnson married James Goble and had three children, deciding to become a teacher instead of a mathematician. After James Goble died of cancer, Katherine Goble married Colonel James A. Johnson. Katherine Johnson eventually got a job as a human computer at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the predecessor to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). While working for NASA, Johnson determined the trajectories of the Apollo Missions (1961-1972), including the first manned space flights of astronauts Alan Shepard (1961) and John Glenn (1962) as well as Apollo 11, more commonly known as the moon landing (1969). She received the Lunar Orbiter Spacecraft and Operations Team Award, the Apollo Group Achievement Award, and was a multiple-time winner of the Langley Research Center Special Achievement Awards for her expert mathematical skills. In order to survive as an African-American woman in America’s WWII job market, Johnson had to use her virtues of hardworking and resilience. Hardworking means to give one’s full effort into making something succeed, which could be by performing well in an impactful field or providing an extra hand wherever you can. Resilience means to repeatedly defy someone or something because it is wrong or unjust, whether it is as dramatic as a revolution or as little as remaining seated on a bus. Her hard work for NASA and resilience against unfair treatment is what makes Katherine Johnson an inspiring hero for today’s modern society. In the face of prejudice, Katherine Johnson used her admirable work ethic and resilient attitude to advance in her field; she worked to devolve intransigent traditions and open the door for future generations of scientists, making her an exemplary hero that inspires young students today.

Katherine Johnson working at Langley Research Centerwww.nasa.govJohnson was always devoted to working hard, no matter what it cost her personally. Johnson worked as a human computer for many years before the invention of the electronic computer and astronaut John Glenn’s visit to space. At the time, human computers were generally more trustworthy than electronic computers, but the machines were usually faster. However, Johnson’s work as a human computer was far from over: “Even after NASA began using electronic computers, John Glenn requested that she personally recheck the calculations made by the new electronic computers before his flight aboard Friendship 7” (Smith par.5). Rechecking all of the calculations for John Glenn’s launch was tedious and time-consuming work, but Katherine Johnson used her admiral work ethic to power through. America’s support of the Space Race and John Glenn’s life depended on the calculations that Johnson confirmed from the electronic computer. When the stakes were high, Katherine Johnson did not rest until she was confident that the calculations were correct, no matter how exhausting the work was. Johnson’s hard work to ensure the safety and success of the launch shows her dedication; she worked hard in order to help the people around them succeed despite the flawless work it demanded of her. Similarly, Katherine Johnson pushed her limits for her country and the astronauts, working with other human computers in the heat of the Space Race: “We worked mostly at night, so we could communicate with the computers. Most of the time we worked sixteen-hour days.... One morning I woke up in my car by the side of the road--I had fallen asleep behind the wheel” ("Katherine Coleman Goble Johnson." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 61 qtd. in par. 12). America’s success in the Space Race was imperative to both American pride and scientific advancement, so Johnson willingly sacrificed sleep and time with her family to ensure the safety of the space-bound astronauts. Johnson devoted herself to a cause that would enrich millions of lives, no matter what it cost her physically, mentally, and emotionally. Commitment to a good cause despite her hardships makes Johnson admirable. When the safety of others and America’s pride were at stake, Katherine Johnson found ways to help beyond what was expected of her.

Additionally, Johnson was resilient when it came to fighting against intransigent rules for even the smallest of rights. For example, it was the policy at NASA to omit female mathematicians from the editorial meetings in which male engineers discussed calculations and the relationship of those calculations to the main project. When Johnson was excluded from these meetings, she asked repeatedly for entrance into the meetings: “‘Why can’t I go to the editorial meetings?’ Katherine Goble asked again, undeterred by the initial demurral. She always kept asking until she received a satisfactory answer. Her requests were gentle but persistent, like the trickle of water that eventually forces its way through a rock… ‘Let her go,’ (the engineers) finally said, exasperated” (Shetterly ch.17). Katherine Johnson was frustrated with the sexist denial she received when she asked to attend the meetings, yet she continued to persist. Katherine Johnson risked losing her job by bothering her male superiors, yet that didn’t stop her from fighting for the minor right to attend a male-only meeting. Johnson’s resilience was eventually rewarded with access to the meetings. Johnson’s intolerance of unjust and discriminatory treatment fueled her fight for equal rights within NASA by overriding the rule prohibiting women from attending the editorial meetings. Instead of submitting to unfair treatment, Johnson persisted for her rights which helped those around her, making her a hero to all women at NASA. In addition, Johnson was able to defy the policy that required a man’s name to be credited on a project, even if a woman worked with him for the entire project. By finishing the project, Johnson guaranteed that her name went on the paper: “‘Determination of Azimuth Angle at Burnout for placing a Satellite over a Selected Earth Position..." (was) published in September 1960- the first report to come out of Langley’s Aerospace Mechanics Division 9 (or its predecessor, the Flight Research Division) by a female author” (Shetterly ch.18). The simple right to be credited for her research paper was a minor victory, but it had a cascading effect. Johnson’s resilience against a misogynistic protocol allowed for future papers to be published under a female name- Johnson’s persistence for one paper led to an invaluable success. Johnson risked losing her job yet again by opposing unequal treatment, but it resulted with a success that all women within NASA benefited from. Johnson’s resilience against prejudice allowed others to receive the right they deserved, even if she could have lost everything in the process. By openly resisting the prejudiced practices of her field, Katherine Johnson helped women of all skin colors gain closer equality in a male-dominated program.

Johnson receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama in November, 2015www.cbsnews.comBecause of her resilience and hard work, Katherine Johnson inspires others to stand up for justice and equality by leading by example. Her achievements in a time when African-American women were absent from most science programs proves that giving maximum effort and opposing prejudice can lead to success. In 2015, Johnson received the Presidential Medal of Freedom for space travel, a prestigious civilian award. Her fight against racial and gender limitations to help others succeed is what qualifies her as a hero. She used her drive to work hard and her resilience in the form of defiance to make groundbreaking achievements for herself and future minority scientists. Katherine Johnson inspires me and other young, female scientists to question everything and defy the gender stereotype of female submission. She reminds us, “There’s no such thing as a dumb question, it’s dumb if you don’t ask it. Girls are capable of doing everything that men are capable of doing” (Katherine Johnson). As a female scientist, I have experienced my share of sexism and limitations within science and mathematics. I have been told that engineering and math “is for boys” and faced staggeringly unequal male to female ratios on top of that. Females made up barely over 25% of my national Science Olympiad team, and that percentage is considered high in many science programs altogether. It is easy to mistake underrepresentation in math and science for inability in math and science, but heroes like Katherine Johnson remind me that women have a place in predominantly male fields. Despite the unfortunate odds that women face in STEM fields, I will continue to push for equality by following my dreams as an engineering major and a math minor. If Katherine Johnson was able to break gender barriers written into the practices at NASA, then so can I. Each person has the potential to be a hero, so long as they use what is a part of them to help change the world.  If we face our Cyclops, all of us can be our own Odysseus.

Works Cited

Homer, and Robert Fitzgerald. “New Coasts and Poseidon’s Son” Book Nine. The Odyssey. New York: Vintage Books, 1990. Print.

"Katherine Coleman Goble Johnson." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 61, Gale, 2007. Biography in Context, Accessed 21 December 2017.

NASA Langley Research Center. “Katherine Johnson Interview, Sept. 2017”. YouTube, Sept. 22, 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgW2kpNQ7BY, Jan. 2, 2018

Shetterly, Margot Lee. Hidden Figures. Published in the United States, HarperCollins Publishers, 2016, Print.

Smith, Yvette. “Katherine Johnson: The Girl Who Loved to Count”. NASA, November 20th, 2015, https://www.nasa.gov/feature/katherine-johnson-the-girl-who-loved-to-count, NASA, January 02, 2018.