Elizabeth Armstrong Wood, first woman
scientist at Bell Telephone Laboratories, died of a stroke on 23 March 2006 in Freehold, New Jersey.
Betty was born on 19 October
1912 in New York City and earned a BA degree in geology in 1933 from Barnard College. She then went
to Bryn Mawr College, where she was awarded an MA in geology in 1934 and a PhD in geology in 1939. Her
interest in crystallography was greatly encouraged at Bryn Mawr by Lindo Patterson, who was in
the physics department. After working as an instructor in geology and mineralogy at Bryn Mawr and
Barnard and as a research assistant at Columbia University, Betty joined the physics research
department at Bell Telephone Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey, in 1943; she maintained
a research program there until she retired in October 1967.
Betty's scientific studies
were in x-ray crystallography and involved new semiconducting, lasing, magnetic, and superconducting
materials, with an emphasis on those displaying both ferromagnetic and piezoelectric properties.
She also investigated the effects of oriented electric fields on a variety of materials. In those
early days of crystal-structure determination, she contributed expertly to the development
of methods for measuring and interpreting x-ray diffraction patterns.
Whether through discussions
at lunch or in the corridor or through direct collaboration, Betty's interactions with other researchers
at Bell Labs contributed immeasurably to the mutual advancement of their science. Her scientific
advice was constantly sought, as acknowledged in the company's official history A History
of Engineering and Science in the Bell System: Physical Sciences (1925–1980) (AT&T
Bell Laboratories, 1983). She collaborated with many outstanding scientists who were among the
most inventive minds at Bell Labs, including Richard Bozorth, Bernd Matthias, Robert Miller,
Walter Bond, Lester Germer, Alan Holden, and Joseph Remeika. The AT&T historical account
notes that Betty's work "helped to develop an understanding of the relationship between physical
properties and crystal structure and made possible the synthesis of many new substances with predictable
properties. Substituent atoms could be introduced into a known structure in a controlled way,
and the relationship between properties and the substituents at known sites could be quantitatively
determined." The management of Bell Labs greatly appreciated Betty and often asked her to help
with ceremonial duties. The Bell Labs Picturephone service, for example, was inaugurated in 1964
by a phone call from Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson in the White House to Betty, accompanied by New York Mayor
Robert F. Wagner Jr, at the Picturephone center in Grand Central Terminal.
Betty was strongly involved
in the formation of the American Crystallographic Association. In 1947, when she was secretary
of the American Society for X-Ray and Electron Diffraction, she collaborated with William Parrish,
secretary of the Crystallographic Society of America, in inviting the newly formed International
Union of Crystallography (IUCr) to hold its first congress at Harvard University. It was at that
congress in 1948 that a merger of ASXRED and CSA was discussed by the officers of both societies,
who presented a plan that was hotly debated and eventually accepted by both groups. As a result,
Betty, together with Isidor Fankuchen, Parrish, and Patterson, drafted a constitution for the
proposed American Crystallographic Association. In 1957 she became the ACA's first woman president;
the second, Isabella L. Karle, was not elected until 1976.
Betty served the crystallographic
community in many other ways. She was a member of the Governing Board of the American Institute of
Physics (1963–69), AIP's Visiting Scientist Program (1961–72), the NSF-sponsored
Commission on College Physics (1967–71), the NSF project Physical Science for Nonscience
Students (1965–71), the School Mathematics Study Group (1966–69), and the IUCr
Commission on Crystallographic Teaching (1969–72). She chaired the US delegation to the
second IUCr General Assembly in 1951 and was a delegate to the eighth assembly in Stonybrook in 1969.
Betty was a wonderful and
dedicated teacher. The many books she wrote, including Crystals and Light: An Introduction
to Optical Crystallography (Van Nostrand, 1964), earned her a reputation for clearly written
texts. Her book Science for the Airplane Passenger (Houghton Mifflin, 1968) also proved
successful. Her deep interest in improving the scientific understanding of the general public
was recognized by the ACA's establishment of the Elizabeth A. Wood Science Writing Award, whose
purpose is to honor the authors of outstanding publications that bring science to the public's
attention. The first award was presented in 1997 to Nobel laureate Roald Hoffmann.
Betty's interests were
not confined to science. For many years she and her husband, Sandy, hybridized and raised beautiful
irises in their Murray Hill garden, and she was president of the Garden State Iris Society and the
Median Iris Society. She loved ocean sailing and spent much time on her sailboat. But she always
maintained a keen and active interest in crystallographic problems.
Featured Jobs
