On The Shoulders of Giants
  • Home
  • About
    • Board of Trustees
    • Joseph Ward - OTSOG Author
  • Non-Profit Programs
  • World Giants
    • Giants of Africa
    • Giants of Asia
    • Giants of North America
    • Giants of Europe
    • Giants of Oceania (Australia)
    • Giants of South America
  • Contact
  • Store
  • On the Shoulders of Giants Volume 4 The Caribbean

1/5/2018

Dr. Marie Maynard Daly: The First African-American PhD. in Chemistry

0 Comments

Read Now
 
Picture
April 16, 1921, Marie Maynard Daly was born in Queens, New York to parents Ivan Daly and Helen Page. Her father was a postal clerk from the British West Indies and her mother was a native of New York. Marie was inspired by her father who attended Cornell University and studied chemistry but did not graduate because of financial trouble. She was also inspired by her grandfather’s extensive library where she was able to read about science and famous scientist. Her love for reading led her to read the book The Microbe Hunters by Paul de Kruif, a book that helped her make her decision on what she wanted to pursue professionally. Marie attended Hunter College High School, an all-girls magnet school for gifted young girls. After graduating Hunter College High School she attended Queens College in Flushing, New York. In 1942, she graduated Queens College magna cum laude with a degree in chemistry and was named the Queens College Scholar. Her next step was earning her master’s degree from New York University in 1943; she also worked as a laboratory assistant at Queens College to make a living. After working as a laboratory assistant she would work as a chemistry tutor as she pursued her doctoral degree from Columbia University.

While working on her doctorate Marie was supervised by Dr. Mary L. Caldwell, who holds a doctorate in nutrition; with the help of Dr. Caldwell Marie was able to learn how the body produced chemicals to digest food. In 1947, Marie was able to successfully complete her thesis titled “A Study of the Products Formed By the Action of Pancreatic Amylase on Corn Starch”, and earned her PhD. in chemistry; Marie Daly became the first African-America woman to earn a PhD. in chemistry. From 1947 to 1948 Marie worked as a physical science instructor at Howard University while conducting research with Herman Branson on the side. She was awarded an American Cancer Society grant to help her conduct postdoctoral research; her research led her to joining Dr. A.E. Mirsky at the Rockefeller Institute to study the cell nucleus. At the institute Marie was able to determine the base compositions of the deoxypentose nucleic acids present by studying the nuclei of a cell. She explored the cytoplasmic ribonucleoprotein and how it played a role in protein synthesis, she was also able to use mice to study how protein metabolism differed between fasting and eating conditions.

Daly’s fortunes changed in 1953 when an abundance of funding was available for the research she was conducting. She began working with Dr. Quentin B. Deming to study the effects of aging, hypertension and atherosclerosis on the wall of an artery. She became an assistant professor of biochemistry and medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University. Daly had a passion for teaching and was adamant about helping to increase the number of black youth interested and attending medical school. Daly had an interest in learning how hypertension affected a person’s circulatory system, her interest helped her to serve as an investigator for the American Heart Association. She researched the effects of smoking on the lungs and served as a member of the prestigious board of governors of the New York Academy of Sciences. She received awards from American Association for the Advancement of Science, New York Academy of Sciences, and Council on Arteriosclerosis of the American Heart Association. She received a designation of a career scientist by the Health Research Council of the City of New York before her retirement in 1986. In 1988, she created a scholarship for African American students majoring in chemistry and physics at Queens College, in memory of her father. In 1999, she became one of the top 50 women in science, engineering and technology, a title given to her by the National Technical Association. On October 28, 2003 Daly died at the age of 82 as the first African-American woman in history to earn a PhD. in chemistry. Dr. Marie Maynard Daly, we proudly stand on your shoulders.
 

J.A. Ward
​References:
https://www.biography.com/people/marie-m-daly-604034

https://www.chemheritage.org/historical-profile/marie-maynard-daly


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Maynard_Daly


​http://www.blackpast.org/aah/clark-marie-maynard-daly-1921-2003

Share

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

Details

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014

    Categories

    All
    Africa
    Asia
    Europe
    North America
    Oceania (Australia)
    South America

    RSS Feed

    Click Here to join our mailing list

Contact Us:

Phone:
850-363-1516

Email: mail@ontheshoulders.org

Mailing Address:
​P.O. Box 5442 
Tallahassee, FL 32314

Connect With Us


Picture
Buy Now
Picture
Buy Now
Picture
Buy Now
Picture
Available Now!!!
Site powered by PIT Web Design
  • Home
  • About
    • Board of Trustees
    • Joseph Ward - OTSOG Author
  • Non-Profit Programs
  • World Giants
    • Giants of Africa
    • Giants of Asia
    • Giants of North America
    • Giants of Europe
    • Giants of Oceania (Australia)
    • Giants of South America
  • Contact
  • Store
  • On the Shoulders of Giants Volume 4 The Caribbean