Today marks the eleventh day of 28 Days of Black Excellence created by VocalEssence Associate Conductor G. Phillip Shoultz, III. Phillip highlights the work of James Edward Maceo West, a research professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University and member of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. West is known worldwide as the co-inventor of the foil electret microphone, the first inexpensive, highly sensitive, compact microphone which revolutionized the way sound is amplified. Our musical pairing is “Take the A Train” written by Billy Strayhorn, made popular by Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington and his Orchestra.
James Edward Maceo West (1913-present)
Notable Achievements: Co-inventor of the foil electret microphone, awards include: John Scott Medal (2018), U.S. National Medal of Technology and Innovation, Honorary Doctorate from Temple University (2014), Honorary Doctorate from University of Pennsylvania (2013), Benjamin Franklin Medical Award in Electrical Engineering, National Inventors Hall of Fame, National Academy of Engineering (1998).
Learn More
- https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/west-james-edward-maceo-1931/
- https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2016/05/listen-up-james-west-forever-changed-the-way-we-hear-the-world/
- https://engineering.jhu.edu/ece/faculty/west-james-e/
Sponsor Thank You
This episode of 28 Days of Black Excellence was sponsored by Kathie and Frank Cerra and George and Lou Thompson.
Sponsor Black Excellence
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