American History, Unfiltered: Shirley Jackson

American History, Unfiltered: A post series highlighting people from traditionally marginalized groups who accomplished great things for America.

As the first African American woman to graduate with a doctorate in particle physics, Dr. Shirley Jackson’s inventions are the foundation for a lot of modern technology. She started her career at Bell Telephones, helping to invent developments like touch-tone dialing and call-waiting. Most impressively, Dr. Jackson also invented fiber-optic cables, an assembly that links communication systems around the world.