In this episode of pplpod, we blast off with the incredible story of Dr. Mae Jemison, the engineer, physician, and astronaut who made history in 1992 as the first African-American woman to travel into space. Join us as we trace Jemison’s journey from a tenacious student entering Stanford University at age 16 to her time serving as a Peace Corps medical officer in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

We explore how Jemison broke barriers in NASA’s Astronaut Group 12 and logged over 190 hours in space aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour during mission STS-47. You’ll hear about her unique blend of science and art, including her training in dance and why she brought an Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater poster into orbit.

Key topics in this episode include:

• The Star Trek Connection: How Nichelle Nichols’ portrayal of Lieutenant Uhura inspired Jemison, leading to her own cameo on Star Trek: The Next Generation—making her the first real-life astronaut to appear on the show.
• Science in Orbit: The experiments Jemison conducted as a Science Mission Specialist, from bone cell research to biofeedback training.
• Beyond NASA: Her resignation in 1993 to fuse social science with technology, her work as a professor at Dartmouth and Cornell, and her leadership of the DARPA-funded 100 Year Starship project.

Tune in to learn how Dr. Jemison continues to advocate for science literacy and refuses to be limited by the imaginations of others.