Carbon Queen: The Remarkable Life of Nanoscience Pioneer Mildred Dresselhaus

Weinstock, deputy editorial director at MIT News, highlights the many scientific contributions of nanotechnologist Mildred “Millie” Dresselhaus (1930–2017) in this striking portrait of a brilliant mind. Born Mildred Spiewak in Brooklyn to Polish and Dutch immigrants, Dresselhaus didn’t have an easy childhood, but her curiosity, willingness to work hard, and ability to relate to others, along with her musical prowess, opened doors. Dresselhaus faced gender discrimination during her early years in academia and science (she was told she had three career options: teacher, nurse, or secretary), but, as Weinstock shows, she found encouragement from her husband Gene, and from trailblazers such as Nobel Prize winner Rosalyn Sussman Yalow. Dresselhaus broke ground herself, both by focusing her research on carbon when it was not a sought-after field and by using the leadership positions she earned at MIT and elsewhere to pave the way for women in the sciences. While Dresselhaus never won a Nobel, her list of accolades includes the Kavli Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Weinstock includes numerous diagrams of various carbon structures to illustrate Dresselhaus’s work, but perhaps the most impressive diagram is the one that depicts the multitude of collaborators on her nearly 1,700 publications. This is a fascinating introduction to a game-changing figure. (Mar.)