Hispanics in Science

1. Hispanics in Science 1943 Hispanic physicist Luis Walter Alvarez left his post at MIT to join the secret Manhattan Project to develop the first atomic bomb. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

2. Hispanics in Heroism 1984Héctor García Pérez, was a Mexican American physician, surgeon, World War II veteran, civil rights advocate, and founder of the founder of the American GI Forum, became the first Hispanic to be awarded the United States of America Medal of Freedom. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

3. Hispanics in Space 1986 Franklin Chang-Díaz became the first Hispanic in space; the astronaut spoke to television viewers from the space shuttle Columbia in Spanish. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

4. Hispanics in Space 1990 Ellen Ochoa became the first Hispanic female to serve as an astronaut. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

5. Hispanics in Education 1988Jaime Escalante became the first Hispanic teacher to become the subject of a Hollywood feature film: Stand and Deliver. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

6. Hispanics in Education 1996Antonia Pantoja, educator and founder of Aspira, Inc., became the first Hispanic woman to receive the Medal of Freedom. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

7. Hispanics in Business 2003 Mexican-American businessman Arturo Moreno becomes the first Latino owner of a Major League baseball team when he plunks down $184 million to buy a controlling stake in the Anaheim Angels. He then lowers tickets prices but spent major $ to acquire stars like Vladimir Guerrero. The Angels became American League Division Camps in 2004 and 2005. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

8. Hispanics in Architecture 1991 Argentine-American architect César Pelli became the first U.S. Hispanic to be named by the American Institute of Architects as one of the 10 most influential living architects. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

9. Hispanics in Math 1991 Argentine-American mathematician Alberto P. Calderón became the first Hispanic to receive the National Medal of Science. He was one of the 20th century’s most important mathematicians. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

10. Hispanics in Technology 1991Alberto Vinicio Baez advanced the study of X-ray imaging optics. His pioneering contributions to this field include the Kirkpatrick-Baez X-ray double reflecting system. The Kirkpatrick-Baez Lamar X-ray telescope has been approved for flight on the Freedom Space Station. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

11. Hispanics for Freedom 1999 Puerto Rico’s Sister Isolina Ferré is awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her work as an advocate of the poor. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

12. Hispanics in Science 1995Mario Molina of MIT shared the Nobel Prize in chemistry with two others for work that led to the international ban on chemicals believed to be depleting the earth’s protective ozone layer. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

13. Hispanics in Medicine 1995Lydia Aguilar-Bryan and her husband Joseph Bryan, endocrinologists at Houston’s Baylor College of Medicine, were the first researchers to solve the problem of hyperinsulinism. The pair discovered how the body regulates the secreting of insulin, thus preparing the way for a cure or better treatment of diabetes. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS

14. Hispanics in America 2000 The Census Bureau documents the booming U.S. Hispanic population; at 35.3 million strong, the number of Hispanics in the United States is expected to triple to over 100 million by the year 2050, making Latinos a hot commodity. 2003 Hispanics are pronounced the nation's largest minority group—surpassing blacks—after new Census figures are released showing the U.S. Hispanic population at 37.1 million as of July 2001. Hispanic Heritage Month@DHS