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Friends shopping at a flower market.

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For #InternationalWomensDay we are celebrating the feminine power that brought life (and a few amazing inventions!) to this planet.

These are the inventors, scientists, and physicist who changed the world with their minds. Without Black women, the following would not even exist.

Caller ID: If there wasn’t for Dr. Shirley Jackson, you would never know who that bug-a-boo is blowing up your phone.  Jackson was the first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D from MIT. She conducted research that yielded the technology behinds caller ID and call waiting.

US-POLITICS-OBAMA-MEDAL

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The Modern Hair Brush: Your edges wouldn’t be on fleek without Lyda Newman. The hairdresser and inventor patented an improved hairbrush in 1898. Without her knowledge, we would still be using hair brushes made of animal hair.

Curling Iron: Theora Stephens, hair dresser and technician patented the curling iron in 1980. Keeping our hair bouncing and defined since.

Heating Furnace:  Alice H. Parker designed a natural gas-fueled heater in 1919.

Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards - 2012 Tribeca Film Festival

Source: Jemal Countess / Getty

Cataract Removal: Ophthamlogist Dr. Patricia Bath invited the Laserphaco probe which is used to remove cataracts in patients.

The Sanitary Belt: Even though we are all grateful for tampons, pads, period panties, and flex cups to stop aunt Flo, Mary Kenner paved the way. She received the patent for inventing the Sanitary Belt in 1956.

The Walker System: Madame C.J. Walker, the first Black female self-made millionaire, developed the Walker System to protect Black hair while women straighter or styled it.

Upgraded Ironing Board: Sarah Boone is the mind behind the modern ironing board. She narrowed the shape and design of the structure to fit a sleeve for faster ironing.

RELATED LINKS

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Celebrating International Women’s Day In Photos

Sisters In The Cockpit: Two Black Women Make Historic Flight

Things That Wouldn’t Exist Without Women (Other Than Every Single Person On The Planet)  was originally published on hellobeautiful.com