A Computer Called Katherine

Interview with the Illustrator

Veronica Miller Jamison

On March 11 on Scott Simon’s public radio show, Weekend Edition Saturday, Mr. Simon interviewed Veronica Miller Jamison. She’s illustrated a book called “A Computer Called Katherine”, it was written by Suzanne Slade. Katherine Coleman Goble Johnson is an African-American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and subsequent U.S. manned spaceflights.

Veronica Jamison is a living example of why the arts should be and how they are connected to STEM. I found the interview very interesting and I hope you’ll take 5 minutes to listen to the show or to read the transcript at THIS LINK. 

Below is one question and answer from the interview.

SIMON: Do you hope that reading this book about Katherine Johnson and seeing your wonderful illustrations can set something off in young readers?

JAMISON: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, there is a huge push to get more girls and more children of color into STEM, which is very important in getting those young minds involved in thinking about, you know, math and science and how that works in the world and how it can make the world a better place. And I hope that children see the writing too and think the same thing about telling stories. And I hope they see the art too, and they think the same thing about painting and making art because, to me, all of it is crucial in – not to sound cliche, but it’s all crucial in making this world kind of a brighter, better place.