VOA慢速英语--Google Honors First Native American Woman Engineer

 

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The search engine Google celebrated¹ on Thursday what would have been the 110th birthday of the first Native American woman engineer. Google honored Mary Ross with a special Google Doodle on its homepage.

Ross was born on August 9, 1908, in the state of Oklahoma. She was the great-granddaughter of John Ross, the longest-serving chief of the Cherokee Nation.

Her work is considered critical to the early stages of the age of space travel.

Ross showed special abilities in math and science from an early age. As a student, she developed an interest in aviation, or the practice of flying aircraft. She went on to earn a master’s degree in mathematics from Colorado State Teachers College -- now called the University of Northern Colorado.

During World War II, Ross began working for the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation as a mathematician². There, she was urged to complete work in aeronautical³ engineering. She earned a special certification in the field from the University of California - Los Angeles in 1949.

Ross was later chosen to join Lockheed’s top-secret Skunk⁴ Works team that worked on aircraft designs. The name refers to a group that is permitted to work independently on advanced projects. She was the only female engineer among the team’s 40 members.

Early on, she researched defense⁵ systems. By the late 1950s, her work centered on satellites and a series of space rockets called Agenda. The rockets were extremely important in the 1960s during the Apollo moon program.

Ross also helped develop early design ideas for space travel between planets, including flyby space flights to study Venus and Mars.

Ross retired⁶ from Lockheed in 1973. But she continued to give talks at high schools and colleges to encourage more women and Native Americans to study engineering.

Mary Ross died in 2008, a few months before her 100th birthday.

Many celebrated Ross’ life on social media. The National Science Foundation wrote on Twitter Thursday, “engineers like Mary Ross are an inspiration to women everywhere. Women and minorities continue to face challenges and break through barriers in engineering.”

Scientists on Twitter wrote that Thursday’s Doodle introduced them to Mary Ross for the first time.

Twitter user Aaron Perez, for example, wrote: “Mary Ross was an engineer who pioneered in the field of satellites. I never would [have] known if it wasn’t for the doodle. Women engineers deserve more recognition.”

And that’s What’s Trending Today.

I’m Lucija Millonig.

Words in This Story

aeronautical - adj. related to the science that deals with airplanes and flying

challenge - n. a difficult task or problem : something that is hard to do

inspiration - n. something that makes someone want to do something or that gives someone an idea about what to do or create : a force or influence that inspires someone

ballistic missile - n. a weapon that is shot through the sky over a great distance and then falls to the ground and explodes?

rocket - n. a spacecraft or missile that is powered by a rocket engine

certification - n. official approval to do something professionally or legally

pioneer - v. to help create or develop (new ideas, methods, etc.) : to be a pioneer in the development of (something)

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 mathematician   

n.数学家

参考例句：

• The man with his back to the camera is a mathematician.背对着照相机的人是位数学家。
• The mathematician analyzed his figures again.这位数学家再次分析研究了他的这些数字。

3 aeronautical   

adj.航空（学）的

参考例句：

• Many of the pilots were to achieve eminence in the aeronautical world. 这些飞行员中很多人将会在航空界声名显赫。 来自辞典例句
• The advent of aircraft brought with it aeronautical engineering. 宇宙飞船的问世导致了航天工程的出现。 来自辞典例句

4 skunk   

n.臭鼬，黄鼠狼；v.使惨败，使得零分；烂醉如泥

参考例句：

• That was a rotten thing to do, you skunk!那种事做得太缺德了，你这卑鄙的家伙！
• The skunk gives off an unpleasant smell when attacked.受到攻击时臭鼬会发出一种难闻的气味。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。