- Wikipedia

{"parse":{"title":"Edith Clarke","pageid":5619624,"text":{"*":"

For other people named Edith Clarke, see Edith Clarke (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Enith Clarke.

Edith Clarke

Born	(1883-02-10)February 10, 1883 Ellicott City, Maryland
Died	October 29, 1959(1959-10-29) (aged 76)
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Vassar College Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Known for	Clarke transformation Clarke calculator
Awards	National Inventors Hall of Fame
Scientific career
Fields	Electrical engineering
Institutions	General Electric University of Texas at Austin
\n

Edith Clarke (February 10, 1883 \u2013 October 29, 1959) was an American engineer and academic. She was the first woman to be professionally employed as an electrical engineer in the United States^[1] and the first female professor of electrical engineering in the country.^[2] She was the first woman to deliver a paper at the American Institute of Electrical Engineers; the first female engineer whose professional standing was recognized by Tau Beta Pi, the oldest engineering honor society and the second oldest collegiate honor society in the United States; and the first woman named as a Fellow of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers. She specialized in electrical power system analysis^[3] and wrote Circuit Analysis of A-C Power Systems.^[4]\n

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Early life and education

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One of nine children, Edith Clarke was born to lawyer John Ridgely Clarke and Susan Dorsey Owings on February 10, 1883, in Ellicott City, Maryland.^[5] After being orphaned at age 12, she was raised by an older sister. She used her inheritance to study mathematics and astronomy at Vassar College, where she graduated in 1908.^[6]\n

After college, Clarke taught mathematics and physics at a private school in San Francisco and at Marshall College. She then spent some time studying civil engineering at the University of Wisconsin\u2013Madison, but left to become a \"computer\" at AT&T in 1912. She computed for George Campbell, who applied mathematical methods to the problems of long-distance electrical transmissions.^[7] While at AT&T, she studied electrical engineering at Columbia University by night.\n

In 1918, Clarke enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the following year she became the first woman to earn an M.S. in electrical engineering from MIT.^[1] Her thesis at MIT was supervised by Arthur E. Kennelly and was titled \"Behavior of a lumpy artificial transmission line as the frequency is indefinitely increased.\"^[8]\n

Professional career

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Unable to find work as an engineer, Clarke went to work for General Electric as a supervisor of computers in the Turbine Engineering Department. During this time, she invented the Clarke calculator,^[1] an early graphing calculator, a simple graphical device that solved equations involving electric current, voltage and impedance in power transmission lines. The device could solve line equations involving hyperbolic functions ten times faster than previous methods. She filed a patent for the calculator in 1921 and it was granted in 1925.^[1]^[9]\n

In 1921, Clarke took a leave of absence from GE to teach physics at the Constantinople Women's College in Turkey because she was not allowed to do electrical engineering work, was not earning the same salary and had a lower professional status as men doing the same work.^[10] The next year, when she returned from Turkey, she was offered a job by GE as a salaried electrical engineer in the Central Station Engineering Department – the first professional female electrical engineer in the United States. She retired from General Electric in 1945.^[11]^[12]\n

Her background in mathematics helped her achieve fame in her field. On February 8, 1926, as the first woman to deliver a paper at the American Institute of Electrical Engineers' (AIEE) annual meeting, she showed the use of hyperbolic functions for calculating the maximum power that a line could carry without instability.^[13] The paper was of importance because transmission lines were getting longer, leading to greater loads and more chances for system instability, and Clarke's paper provided a model that applied to large systems.^[14] Two of her later papers won awards from the AIEE: the Best Regional Paper Prize in 1932 and the Best National Paper Prize in 1941.^[2]\n

She also worked on the design and building of hydroelectric dams in the West including Hoover Dam, contributing her electrical expertise to develop and install the turbines that generate hydropower there to this day.^[15]\n

In 1943, Clarke wrote an influential textbook in the field of power engineering, Circuit Analysis of A-C Power Systems, based on her notes for lectures to GE engineers. This two-volume textbook teaches about her adaption of the symmetrical components system, in which she became interested while working for the second time at GE. This system is a mathematical means for engineers to study and solve problems of power system losses and the performance of electrical equipment. Clarke adopted this system to the three-phase components that are the basis of the electrical grid in the United States. This textbook was used as the basis of education for electrical engineers for many years.^[16]\n

In 1947, she joined the faculty of the Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Texas at Austin, making her the first female professor of electrical engineering in the country.^[2] She taught for 10 years and retired in 1957.^[2]\n

In an interview with The Daily Texan on March 14, 1948, Clarke observed: \"There is no demand for women engineers, as such, as there are for women doctors; but there's always a demand for anyone who can do a good piece of work.\"^[12]\n

Honors

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Clarke was the first female engineer to achieve professional standing in Tau Beta Pi.^[2] In 1948, Clarke was the first female Fellow of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers.^[2] She was the first woman to be accepted as a full voting member in the American Institute of Electrical Engineers.^[17] In 1954, she received the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Achievement Award,^[18] which was presented to her by Evelyn Jetter, one of SWE's founders^[19] and inventor of the automotive ignition transistor, \"in recognition of her many original contributions to stability theory and circuit analysis.\"^[8]^[20] Clarke was selected for inclusion in Women of Achievement in Maryland History in 1998 and was also included in American National Biography and Notable American Women of the Modern Period.^[17]\n

In 2015, Clarke was posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.^[21]\n

References

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^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Carey, Charles Jr. (1999). \"Edith Clarke\". American National Biography. New York: Oxford University Press. Retrieved October 16, 2012. (subscription required)\n
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Durbin, John. \"In Memoriam: Edith Clarke\". Index of Memorial Resolutions and Biographical Sketches. University of Texas. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2019.\n
^ Brittain, J.E. (January 1996). \"Edith Clark and power system stability [Scanning the Past]\". Proceedings of the IEEE. 84 (1): 90. doi:10.1109/JPROC.1996.476030. ISSN 0018-9219. S2CID 26830617.\n
^ Clarke, Edith (1943). Circuit analysis of A-C power systems. J. Wiley & sons, inc.\n
^ Riddle, Larry. \"Edith Clarke\". Biographies of Women Mathematicians. Agnes Scott College. Archived from the original on May 3, 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2012.\n
^ \"League of Coders\". Archived from the original on May 8, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2020.\n
^ \"Edith Clarke\". IEEE Global History Network. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Archived from the original on August 1, 2013.\n
^ ^a ^b \"Edith Clarke\". agnesscott.edu. Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved February 29, 2020.\n
^ US patent 1552113, Edith Clarke, \"Calculator\", issued September 1, 1925, assigned to Clarke, Edith \n
^ Levins, Sandy (July 1, 2020). \"The Electrifying Story of Engineer Edith Clarke\". WednesdaysWomen. Archived from the original on March 14, 2021. Retrieved September 21, 2020.\n
^ \"Edith Clarke\". Maryland Women's Hall of Fame. Maryland State Archives. Archived from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020.\n
^ ^a ^b \"Pioneering Women in Computing Technology\". The Ada Project. Carnegie Mellon University. Archived from the original on May 20, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2014.\n
^ \"WOMAN ADDRESSES ELECTRICAL INSTITUTE; Miss Edith Clarke the Only One of Her Sex to Read a Paper at Engineers' Meeting\". The New York Times. February 9, 1926. Archived from the original on June 26, 2018. Retrieved June 8, 2013.\n
^ \"Edith Clarke \u2013 Engineering Hall of Fame\". edisontechcenter.org. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved February 29, 2020.\n
^ \"Calculator Patent\" (PDF). February 4, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2020.\n
^ \"Pioneering Engineers\" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2020.\n
^ ^a ^b \"Edith Clarke, Maryland Women's Hall of Fame\". msa.maryland.gov. Archived from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved February 29, 2020.\n
^ Hobbs, Amy. \"Edith Clarke\". Biographical Series. Archives of Maryland. Archived from the original on May 30, 2010. Retrieved October 16, 2012.\n
^ \"Edith Clarke, S.W.E., 1954 Award Winner\". The Woman Engineer. VII (13): 5 [page 294 in compilation]. 1954. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2019.\n
^ \"Evelyn Jetter, Engineer And Inventor, 52, Dies\". The New York Times. December 22, 1979. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 24, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.\n
^ \"Edith Clarke\" (PDF). National Inventors Hall of Fame. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2015.\n

External links

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Maryland Women's Hall of Fame

1980s

1985	\n Margaret Brent \n Rachel Carson \n Rita C. Davidson \n Gladys Spellman \n Harriet Tubman \n
1986	\n Lillie Mae Carroll Jackson \n Elizabeth Ann Seton \n Henrietta Szold \n Jeanette Rosner Wolman \n Hiltgunt Zassenhaus \n
1987	\n Clara Barton \n Frances Ellen Watkins Harper \n Juanita Jackson Mitchell \n Mary Shaw Shorb \n Helen B. Taussig \n
1988	\n Barbara Mikulski \n Sadie Kneller Miller \n Mary Eliza Risteau \n Martha Carey Thomas \n Verda Welcome \n
1989	\n Bertha Adkins \n Eugenie Clark \n Lavinia Engle \n Lena King Lee \n Estelle R. Ramey \n

1990s

1990	\n Lucille Maurer \n Enolia McMillan \n Pauli Murray \n Adele Hagner Stamp \n Mary Lemist Titcomb \n
1991	\n Rita R. Colwell \n Mary Elizabeth Lange \n Claire McCardell \n Bessie Moses \n Alta Schrock \n
1992	\n Annie Armstrong \n Anna Ella Carroll \n Rose Kushner \n Margaret Collins Schweinhaut \n Carmen Delgado Votaw \n
1993	\n Rosalyn Blake Bell \n Lucille Clifton \n Elizabeth King Ellicott \n Jean Spencer \n Martha Ellicott Tyson \n
1994	\n Rosalie Silber Abrams \n Mary Elizabeth Banning \n Harriet Elizabeth Brown \n Connie Morella \n Mary Adelaide Nutting \n
1995	\n Jill Moss Greenberg \n Mary L. Nock \n Amanda Taylor Norris \n Nettie Barcroft Taylor \n Euphemia Mary Goldsborough Willson \n
1996	\n Madeleine L. Ellicott \n Ethel Ennis \n Mary Digges Lee \n Brigid G. Leventhal \n Barbara A. Robinson \n
1997	\n Diane L. Adams \n Sol del Ande Mendez Eaton \n Catherine R. Gira \n Helen L. Koss \n Rosa Ponselle \n
1998	\n Constance Ross Beims \n Mary Katharine Goddard \n Elaine Ryan Hedges \n Mary Carter Smith \n
1999	\n Florence Riefle Bahr \n Lillian C. Compton \n Edith Houghton Hooker \n Elizabeth Fran Johnson \n Bernice Smith White \n

2000s

2000	\n Constance Uriolo Battle \n Lois Green Carr \n Sonia Pressman Fuentes \n Josephine Jacobsen \n Rosetta Stith \n
2001	\n Kathleen Feeley \n Misbah Khan \n Charmaine Krohe \n Eunice Kennedy Shriver \n Sandra W. Tomlinson \n
2002	\n Mabel Houze Hubbard \n Florence P. Kendall \n Mary Young Pickersgill \n Lorraine Sheehan \n
2003	\n Virginia Walcott Beauchamp \n Edith Clarke \n Kathryn J. DuFour \n Ruth L. Kirschstein \n Etta Haynie Maddox \n Debbie Yow \n
2004	\n Edmonson sisters \n Nancy Grasmick \n Esther McCready \n Margaret Byrd Rawson \n Vivian V. Simpson \n
2005	\n Shoshana Shoubin Cardin \n Bessie Olive Cole \n Susan R. Panny \n Edyth H. Schoenrich \n
2006	\n Susan Pardee Baker \n Liebe Sokol Diamond \n Bea Gaddy \n Marilyn Hughes Gaston \n Rebecca Alban Hoffberger \n Grace Snively \n
2007	\n Annette M.Deener \n Sally T. Grant \n Prasanna Nair \n Karen H. Rothenberg \n Audrey E. Scott \n
2008	\n Ramona McCarthy Hawkins \n Ellen Moses Heller \n Billie Holiday \n Pauline Menes \n Toby Orenstein \n Emily Wilson Walker \n
2009	\n Ilia Fehrer \n Diane Griffin \n Harriet Legum \n Allyson R. Solomon \n Anne St. Clair Wright \n

2010s

2010	\n Claire M. Fraser \n Anne Catherine Hoof Green \n Irene Morgan Kirkaldy \n Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps \n Bernice R. Sandler \n Lillie D. Shockney \n
2011	\n Carol W. Greider \n Barbara Holdridge \n Ligia Peralta \n Gertrude Poe \n Lucy Diggs Slowe \n June A. Willenz \n
2012	\n Maureen Black \n Margaret Dunkle \n Nancy Kopp \n Alice Manicur \n Diana Gribbon Motz \n Gwendolyn Rooks \n
2013	\n Helen Delich Bentley \n Jean B. Cryor \n Charlene Dukes \n Ellen Sauerbrey \n Linda A. Shevitz \n Beatrice P. Tignor \n
2014	\n Dorothy F. Bailey \n Agnes Kane Callum \n Renee E. Fox \n Susan K. Goering \n Henrietta Lacks \n Ann Cipriano Rees \n
2015	\n Beverly B. Byron \n E. Gail de Planque \n Mary S. Feik \n Katherine O'Brien \n Linda L. Singh \n Sue Fryer Ward \n
2016	\n Sophia Arabatzis Balis \n Oretha Bridgwaters-Simms \n Mary C. Goodwillie \n Elaine Danforth Harmon \n Joanne Katz \n Lizette Woodworth Reese \n
2017	\n Marsha Coleman-Adebayo \n Carolyn Colvin \n Donna Edwards \n Mary Garrett \n Katharine Blodgett Gebbie \n Katie Ledecky \n Helen Maroulis \n Lilian Welsh \n
2018	\n Sandra I. Barnes \n Sandra Williams Ortega \n Emily Saunders Plummer \n Rita L. Robinson \n Hattie N. Washington \n
2019	\n Marielsa A. Bernard \n Augusta T. Chissell \n Dominique Dawes \n Virginia Hall \n Rosa Gumataotao Rios \n Evelyn Williams Townsend \n Phyllis B. Trickett \n Pauline Woo Tsui \n

2020s

2020	\n Victorine Q. Adams \n Evelyn O. A. Darden \n Claire Parkinson \n Nancy Roman \n Leslie R. Wolfe \n
2021	\n Elizabeth Bobo \n Margaret Hawkins \n Ruby Reese Moone \n Nancy K. Welker \n Celeste Revillon Winans \n
2022	\n Dorothy Blum \n Mary L. Cleave \n Gloria Richardson \n Beatrice Rodgers \n Odessa M. Shannon \n
2023	\n Janeen L. Birckhead \n Charlotte M. Cooksey \n Ana Sol Gutierrez \n Gloria G. Lawlah \n Jackie Ronne \n
2024	\n Adrienne A. Jones \n Susan C. Lee \n Brooke Lierman \n Aruna Miller \n Nancy Pelosi \n

Authority control databases $\"Edit$
International	ISNI VIAF WorldCat
National	Germany United States Korea
Academics	CiNii Scopus zbMATH
Other	IdRef

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Early life and education

Professional career

Honors

See also

Further reading

References

External links

Edith Clarke

Media collections