She doesn t want to go to school and definitely not live in a house Laura Dekker born in New Zealand in 1995 to Dutch German parents is strong willed and determined to tackle a very special challenge sailing around the world in her two masted ketch Guppy at age 14 In 2010 she sets sail after a court has previously ruled against her journey Child welfare authorities had intervened plus her plan is hotly debated in pubs sailing clubs and the media Is it okay to let a child sail around the world Laura prevails with support from her family The 50 000 kilometer 31 000 mile trip starts in Gibraltar and on January 21 2012 ends on the coast of the Dutch Caribbean island of St Maarten At age 16 she secures the behind the scenes title of youngest solo circumnavigator The accolade will never become any more official than that due to fears that others might want to follow her example Today Laura Dekker is 23 years old and plan ning to build a boat Guppy XL an ocean going two masted ketch 24 meters 79 feet long She intends to start sailing it in 2022 albeit not alone I d like to show children and teenagers how to cut their own path and make their dreams come true she says THE SAILOR About female circumnavigators A woman who played an important part in paving the way for Laura Dekker is the British sailor Tracy Edwards 30 years before Laura s journey Edwards contested the tough Whitbread Round the World Race with her yacht Maiden and an all female crew an affront against the ocean regatta world that was dominated by men up until that time The female skipper receives threatening letters her front yard is polluted by oil and the sailing press accuses her in advance of being at fault in the event of an accident But the Maiden finishes as the second fastest boat in class and changes female sailing for good That she had a special interest in fashion is somewhat surprising But this is exactly what the chemist Stephanie Kwolek who developed Kevlar in 1965 and as a child was incessantly sewing clothes for her dolls said The American of Polish descent would have liked to have become a physician To raise money for medical school she takes a temporary job at chemical corporation DuPont The work there suits her so well that she decides not to pursue a medical career In 1964 she discovers liquid crystalline polymers that can be processed into synthetic fibers The material subsequently better known as Kevlar is five times harder than steel yet amazingly lightweight The synthetic fiber is still used in bullet proof vests helmets and aircraft today The scientist her self will later refer to her discovery as a lucky coincidence in the Washington Post This can be assumed to be an understatement especially since she has to persuade her col leagues to spin the material like a fiber She does not by the way directly benefit from the profits DuPont generates with Kevlar In 2014 she dies at the age of 90 A few years earlier Kwolek says in an interview At least I hope I m saving lives There are very few people in their careers that have the opportunity to do something to benefit mankind THE CHEMIST About female inventors Born in 1867 married at 14 a mother at 18 widowed at 20 Sarah Breedlove has to woman up early in life When she suffers hair loss at age 33 she experiments with an antidote and later goes on to develop a gel to straighten curly hair with a hot comb a huge success with African American women that lays the foundation for a cosmetic empire Its name is Madam C J Walker a name Sarah adopts after marrying her second husband She becomes the first female self made millionaire Walker not only uses her wealth to have a mansion built in New York next to the Rockefellers but gives generously to charity and supports the fight for equal rights of African Americans It is a short life as an entrepreneur activist and philanthropist Walker dies aged only 51 STEPHANIE KWOLEK 1923 2014 LAURA DEKKER 1995 in motion 39

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