So much to read, so little time? Get an overview of Hidden Figures, the true story about the African American female mathematicians who helped NASA win the space race. Margot Lee Shetterly's Hidden Figures tells the incredible real-life account of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden--who, in a time when black women faced seemingly insurmountable obstacles, went to work as "calculators" at NASA. With pencils, paper, and slide rules, they transformed airplane, rocket, and satellite designs--and ensured a World War II victory. Despite the social and political climate at the height of Jim Crow, these women rose up and became integral to the project that put the first man on the moon. From World War II to the Cold War to the civil rights movement to the space race, Hidden Figures tells the story of four remarkable women whose contributions to science led to some of NASA's greatest successes. The book has become a New York Times bestseller as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated picture starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Kirsten Dunst, and Kevin Costner. With historical context, important quotes, fascinating trivia, a glossary of terms, and other features, this summary and analysis of Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race is intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.

This is the fourth in a series of five letter reports that provide an independent review of the more than 30 evidence reports that NASA has compiled on human health risks for long-duration and exploration spaceflights.This letter report reviews eight evidence reports and examines the quality of the evidence, analysis, and overall construction of each report; identifies existing gaps in report content; and provides suggestions for additional sources of expert input. Table of Contents Front Matter 2016 Letter Report Appendix A: Meeting Agendas Appendix B: Committee Biographical Sketches

The search for life in the solar system and beyond has to date been governed by a model based on what we know about life on Earth (terran life). Most of NASA's mission planning is focused on locations where liquid water is possible and emphasizes searches for structures that resemble cells in terran organisms. It is possible, however, that life exists that is based on chemical reactions that do not involve carbon compounds, that occurs in solvents other than water, or that involves oxidation-reduction reactions without oxygen gas. To assist NASA incorporate this possibility in its efforts to search for life, the NRC was asked to carry out a study to evaluate whether nonstandard biochemistry might support life in solar system and conceivable extrasolar environments, and to define areas to guide research in this area. This book presents an exploration of a limited set of hypothetical chemistries of life, a review of current knowledge concerning key questions or hypotheses about nonterran life, and suggestions for future research. Table of Contents Front Matter Executive Summary 1 Introduction 2 A Sketch of the Chemistry Behind Known Carbon-based Life on Earth 3 Pushing the Boundaries of Life 4 Alternatives to Terran Biochemistry in Water 5 Origin of Life 6 Why Water? Toward More Exotic Habitats 7 Life Detection and Biomarkers 8 Conclusions and Recommendations Appendix A Glossary Appendix B Biographies of Committee Members and Staff