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Asked by bev to Alex, Antonio, Christina, Martin, Nicola on 6 Nov 2015.
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Christina Lynch answered on 6 Nov 2015:
My favourite engineer is Margaret Hamilton. She studied maths in college and got a job as a programmer. She worked on the on-board flight software for Apollo space program and her code helped get people to the moon which I think is really cool. 🙂
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Martin O'Halloran answered on 8 Nov 2015:
My favourite scientist/mathematician is Évariste Galois. He was this incredibly talented french mathematician who only lived till 20, but made some incredible mathematical discoveries.
He died at age 20 when he was shot in a duel (probably over an ex-girlfriend), but the night before his death, he documented all his mathematical ideas. These ideas were incredible. We can only imagine what he would have accomplished if he lived for longer!
The lesson here is if you’re an amazing mathematician, don’t get into arguments with people who are a better shot than you! 🙂
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Nicola Greene answered on 9 Nov 2015:
Hi Bev
Most recently I have been hugely inspired by the engineers working in West Africa during the Ebola crisis – this was a true selfless approach to engineering with people risking their lives to try to save others.
Historically I admire Sir Joseph Bazalgette – he is the engineer who pioneered the sewer system for London and pushed hard to make it happen in the 1850s. This was at a time when thousands of people in the UK were dying due to cholera from poor sanitation (if you look up ‘The Great Stink of London” you will learn more. Rather than suggesting some small incremental changes, Bazalgette built a system for the whole city which still serves much of London today.
Nicola
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