Dorothy McFadden Hoover
Dorothy Estheryne McFadden Hoover (July 1, 1918 – February 7, 2000) was an American physicist and mathematician. Hoover was a pioneer in the early days of NASA. Originally one of the first black women hired at Langley as a human computer, Hoover would eventually become a published physicist and mathematician. Hoover is one of the first black women to be listed as a co-author on NASA research publications. Her research supported the development of America's first jet fighter, the Sabre. Hoover's accomplishments were featured in Margot Lee Shetterly's bestselling book, Hidden Figures. Early life Dorothy Estheryne McFadden was born in Hope, Arkansas on July 1, 1918, to William McFadden and Elizabeth Wilburn McFadden. She was the granddaughter of enslaved people and the youngest of four children. After graduating high school at the age of 15, Hoover enrolled at Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical, and Normal College (AM&N). She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics in 1938, two months shy of her twentieth birthday. Career After teaching for a few years in Georgia, Hoover received her master's degree in mathematics from Atlanta University in 1943, for the thesis "Some Projective Transformations and Their Applications." She was then hired at the National