Margaret D. Foster
| Margaret D. Foster | |
|---|---|
|
working in the lab in 1919 | |
| Born |
March 4, 1895 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died |
November 5, 1970 (aged 75) Silver Spring, Maryland |
| Citizenship | American |
| Institutions |
United States Geological Survey; Manhattan Project |
| Alma mater | Illinois College |
Margaret Dorothy Foster (March 4, 1895 – November 5, 1970) was an American chemist. She was the first female chemist to work for the United States Geological Survey, and was recruited to work on the Manhattan Project.
Life
She was born in Chicago, Illinois. Her father was James Edward Foster and mother was Minnie MacAuley Foster. She graduated from Illinois College, George Washington University and from American University, with a Ph.D.[1]
Beginning in 1918, she became the first female chemist to work on the United States Geological Survey, developing ways to detect minerals within naturally occurring bodies of water.[2] In 1942, she worked on the Manhattan Project in the Chemistry and Physics Section, under Roger C. Wells, developing two new techniques of quantitative analysis, one for uranium and one for thorium,[3] as well as two new ways to separate the two elements.[2] Upon her return to the Geological Survey after the war, she researched the chemistry of clay minerals and micas.[2] She retired in March 1965.[1]
She died at Holy Cross Hospital, Silver Spring, Maryland.[1]
Publications
- Foster, Margaret D. (1938). "The chemist at work. IX. The chemist in the water resources laboratory". Journal of Chemical Education. American Chemical Society. 15 (5): 228. doi:10.1021/ed015p228.
References
- 1 2 3 Fahey, Joseph J. (March–April 1971). "Memorial of Margaret D. Foster" (PDF). The American Mineralogist. Mineralogical Society of America. 56: 686–690. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
- 1 2 3 Ruth H. Howes, Caroline L. Herzenberg (2003). Their Day in the Sun: Women of the Manhattan Project. Temple University Press. p. 91-2.
- ↑ http://siarchives.si.edu/collections/siris_arc_287607
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Margaret D. Foster. |
- "Margaret D. Foster (1895-1970) | Smithsonian Institution Archives". siarchives.si.edu. Retrieved 2014-03-18.