Dorothy Vaughan
An American mathematician who worked for NASA and was one of the agency's first African-American managers.
Most quoted
"I saw the writing on the wall and I got into the computer business. I'm not going to sit around and wait for them to tell me what to do."
— from Biography/Interviews, 1960
"Girls are capable of doing everything men are capable of doing. Sometimes they have more imagination than men."
— from Interview, 1980
"I always said, 'If you're going to do something, do it right.' Especially if it's sending someone into space."
— from Fictionalized accounts/interpretations
All quotes by Dorothy Vaughan (374)
I believed in the power of numbers.
It wasn't always easy, but it was worth it.
I tried to be a good example.
We were all striving for excellence.
I never stopped learning.
The work we did was essential.
I changed what I could, and what I couldn't, I outlasted.
They said I couldn't do it. So I did it, and then I taught everyone else how to do it too.
If you don't like the rules, change them. If you can't change them, make your own.
I wasn't just a computer; I was a human computer, and I had a brain.
Some people count sheep to fall asleep. I counted trajectories.
They called us 'computers.' I suppose it was better than 'calculating machines with skirts.'
You can't send a man to the moon without a woman's calculations, darling.
I've seen more numbers than most people have seen faces.
The only thing more complicated than rocket science is office politics.
They wanted precision. I gave them perfection.
When they brought in those big machines, I just learned how to program them. Can't stop progress, can you?
I always said, 'If you're going to do something, do it right.' Especially if it's sending someone into space.
Some folks thought a woman's place was in the home. I proved it was in the control room.
My calculations were always right. It was the rest of the world that needed to catch up.
Contemporaries of Dorothy Vaughan
Other Mathematicss born within 50 years of Dorothy Vaughan (1910–2008).