DAME MAGAZINE – When it comes to inspiring young women to enter science and engineering, few have done as much as Kari Byron, the host of MythBusters on the Discovery Channel. She’s not only a fine artist and mother of a 3-year old, but also a seasoned special effects engineer. In past seasons, a typical work day might include arc welding and firing automatic weapons … in a paisley-print sun dress. She has even hosted her own series – Head Rush, on the Science Channel – specifically to get middle school kids jazzed about science. And on Sunday, October 28 Byron returns as host of Large Dangerous Rocket Ships on the Science Channel. “It’s taken a lot of persistence and hard work to get here,” she says, “but it’s so worth it to do the crazy things…
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A Commute Too Far
WALL STREET JOURNAL – Every weekday morning, Brian Boudreau, 52, leaves his house in Temecula, Calif., at 5 a.m. to go to work. It takes him 45 minutes to drive to a Metrolink train station and another hour by rail to get to his office in downtown Los Angeles. The 174-mile round trip was meant to be a temporary arrangement. “All of our [five] kids are in the local school system so it would have been very disruptive to move,” says Mr. Boudreau, who is a project manager at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. “I’m infamous at the office because of my commute.” Mr. Boudreau is one of 3.4 million Americans who have “extreme” commutes, which the U.S. Census Bureau classifies as being 90 minutes or more each way. “It’s…
‘Star Trek’s’ Nichelle Nichols on How Martin Luther King Jr. Changed Her Life
WALL STREET JOURNAL – Best known for playing Lieutenant Uhura, the communications officer on the original 60’s ‘Star Trek’ television series, Nichelle Nichols is one of the first African-American women to be cast in a role other than stereotyped black maid or nanny. She also performed the first inter-racial kiss on national television, which is one of many behind the scene stories told in the upcoming “Pioneers of Television.” The four-part PBS series pays homage to the first generation of genre television shows and the actors who helped break new ground. Speakeasy spoke with Nichelle Nichols, now 78, about her career and how Martin Luther King Jr. changed her life. Speakeasy: You actually worked with Gene Roddenberry before Star Trek. How did the two of you meet? Nichelle Nichols: I was taking…
From Top Gun to Tech Guru
WALL STREET JOURNAL – It had been pouring rain when Eric Voskuil rode his motorcycle to the Navy recruiting office in Albany, N.Y., intending to enlist. He had just quit an internship at International Business Machines Corp. where he was learning programming; he thought he’d like to work with nuclear power and submarines instead. When the recruiters saw his wet helmet, they thought he was a better fit as a pilot. “He definitely was not your typical college kid. It was obvious from his grades that he was a super smart guy, but he didn’t fit the mold of a surface warfare officer,” says John Ortolf, a former Navy recruiter who is now a financial planner at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. “It takes that to get through aviation training. He clearly had…
A Tale of a Young Boxer’s Redemption
WALL STREET JOURNAL – Titan Gilroy’s first act began on the run. His mother fled to Hawaii to escape an abusive husband. And despite a few years of homelessness, she managed to keep her children in school. The move was a difficult adjustment for Mr. Gilroy and his sister, who were picked on for being outsiders. Mr. Gilroy took up boxing as a way to defend himself. He eventually earned a reputation for being a tough fighter, but that gift got him expelled from several public schools. He was finally admitted to a private Catholic high school, working part time to help pay the tuition. After graduating in 1988, Mr. Gilroy was discovered by a local boxing trainer, who sent him to train with Dick Saddler, former trainer for George Foreman and…