Sara Little Turnbull was a force in the world of materials science and industrial design. It’s safe to say most people have used something that started life on her drawing board, but few know her name. She worked with engineered fabrics as a consultant for 3M.
As part of these efforts she designed a molded bra cup that inspired the form of the N95 mask. Later 3M disputed her role in coming up with the N95 mask. She also worked as a consultant for CorningWare on clear-glass cooktop development, early microwave cooking products, storage systems and many other products.
LISTEN TO THE PODCAST
On supporting science journalism
If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
[New to this season of Lost Women of Science? Listen to the most recent episodes on Ruby Payne-Scott, Sallie Pero Mead, Vera Peters, Annie Montague Alexander, Emma Unson Rotor, Mária Telkes, Flemmie Kittrell, Rebecca Lee Crumpler and Eunice Newton Foote.]
Lost Women of Science is produced for the ear. Where possible, we recommend listening to the audio for the most accurate representation of what was said.
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Katie Hafner: I’m Katie Hafner, and this is Lost Women of Science: From Our Inbox, a series of mini episodes featuring women in science that came to us from you, our listeners.
On today’s episode, we hear from designer, Paula Rees, about her mentor: Sara Little Turnbull. You might not know Sara’s name, but I’d bet that you’ve heard of one of her inventions. Plus… in the process of reporting this episode, we discovered that Sara’s story illuminates an issue that we encounter a lot when looking at science history…
Producer Johanna Mayer brings us her story.
Johanna Mayer: I want to tell you about this photograph I came across recently.
It looks like it was taken sometime…
Read the full article here
