- Henry Sampson (inventor)
Henry Thomas Sampson (born in
Jackson, Mississippi in 1934) is an American inventor. He is considered one of the many brilliant black inventors today.Fact|date=July 2008He graduated from high school in the year 1951 from Lainer High School in Jackson, Mississippi. He then attended
Morehouse College for a couple of years before transferring toPurdue University . He received aBachelor's degree in science from Purdue University in 1956. He graduated with an MS degree in engineering from theUniversity of California in 1961. Sampson also received his MS inNuclear Engineering from theUniversity of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1965, and hisPhD in 1967.Inventing
Sampson was employed as a research chemical engineer at the U.S. Naval Weapons Center,
China Lake, California , in the area of high energysolid propellant s and case bonding materials forsolid rocket motor s. Sampson also served as the Director of Mission Development and Operations of the Space Test Program at theAerospace Corporation inEl Segundo, California .His patents included a binder system for
propellant s andexplosive s and a case bonding system for cast composite propellants. Both inventions are related to solid rocket motors. He also received a patent, withGeorge H. Miley , for agamma-electrical cell onJuly 6 ,1971 .Sampson is credited for the invention of the Gamma-Electric cell, which "made it possible to convert Nuclear radiation from reactors of isotopes, directly into electricity without going through a heat cycle. In the nuclear fission process, which involves the splitting of atom, radioactive materials emit ionizing radiation that can cause serious damage to living tissues. Constuctive methods to conver these powerful radiating energies into practical and safe energy sources, is the fundamental philosophy behind the sic|devolopment of the Gamma-Electric Cell."
Writing
Besides inventing the Gamma-Electric Cell, Sampson is also a writer and film historian. He wrote the book "Blacks in Black and White: A Source Book on Black Films". In this book, Sampson writes about the behaviors of African American film makers and entertainers who have been overlooked and unnoticed by film historians between the years 1910 to 1950 giving plenty of useful and interesting history of the African American film industry. In addition he wrote the book, "The Ghost Walks: A Chronological History of Blacks in Show Business, 1865-1910". Sampson is also known for producing documentary films on African American film makers. Besides being a writer and film historian, Sampson associated with the Board of Directors of Los Angeles Southwest College Foundation, as well as a technical consultant to Historical Black Colleges and Universities Program.
Throughout Sampson’s life, he has achieved many awards and honors. Some of his most known accomplishments include being a member of the
United States Navy between the years 1962 and 1964 and earning anAtomic Energy Commission honor between 1964 and 1967. Later he was awarded the Black Image Award from Aerospace Corporation in 1982. Finally, he was awarded the Blacks in Engineering, Applied Science Award, and prize for education, by the Los Angeles Council of Black Professional Engineers in 1983.References
*cite web | url=http://www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/physics/sampson_henryT.html | title=Henry Sampson - Physicist of the African Diaspora | accessdate=2007-02-22 | author=Scott Williams
* [http://www.newcommunity.org/clarion/apr99/articles/p8-2.html]
* [http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/bl_henry_sampson.htm]
* [http://www.famous-inventors.com/inventor-of-the-cell-phone.html]
* [http://www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/physics/sampson_henryT.html]
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