Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

by Margot Lee Shetterly

“Four Freedoms”: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear,

The best of the women made names for themselves for accuracy, speed, and insight. But having the independence of mind and the strength of personality to defend your work

“You are no better than anyone else, and no one is better than you”—that

Their appearance together in front of the group—Mary, petite and black, and Emma, white and nearly a foot taller—made as powerful a statement on the possibilities of the engineering field as their actual presentation.

Serendipity happens when a well-trained mind looking for one thing encounters something else: the unexpected.

It comes from being in a position to seize opportunity from the happy marriage of time, place, and chance.