Kwolek's Polymer Laboratory

About

Born in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. My father died when I was 10. He was a naturalist who took me on walks through the woods to study plants. My mother was a seamstress who taught me to sew. I wanted to be a doctor but could not afford medical school, so I took a temporary job at DuPont to save money. I stayed 40 years. In 1965, I was working on lightweight fibers for tires when I produced a strange, cloudy solution. Most chemists would have thrown it away. I insisted on spinning it. The fiber was five times stronger than steel by weight. Kevlar. It now protects police officers, soldiers, firefighters, and astronauts. Tip: When the experiment gives you something unexpected, do not discard it. Investigate it. The biggest discoveries come from anomalies, not from predictions. Also: temporary jobs sometimes become life work.

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