Alice Ball facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Alice Augusta Ball
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| Born | July 24, 1892 |
| Died | December 31, 1916 (aged 24) Seattle, Washington, U.S.
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| Citizenship | American |
| Alma mater | |
| Known for | Treatment of leprosy |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Chemistry |
Alice Augusta Ball (born July 24, 1892 – died December 31, 1916) was a brilliant African American chemist. She created the "Ball Method," which was the best treatment for leprosy in the early 1900s. Alice Ball made history at the University of Hawaii. She was the first woman and first African American to earn a master's degree there. She was also the university's first female and African American chemistry professor. Sadly, she passed away at just 24 years old. Her amazing work in science was not fully recognized until many years later.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Alice Augusta Ball was born on July 24, 1892, in Seattle, Washington. Her parents were James Presley and Laura Louise Ball. She had two older brothers, William and Robert, and a younger sister, Addie. Her family was quite well-off. Her father was a newspaper editor, photographer, and lawyer. Her mother also worked as a photographer.
Alice's grandfather, James Ball Sr., was also a famous photographer. He was one of the first Black Americans to use a special photo process called daguerreotype. This method printed photos onto metal plates. Some people think her family's love for photography might have sparked Alice's interest in chemistry. This is because photography back then involved working with chemicals like mercury and iodine.
In 1903, Alice and her family moved to Honolulu, Hawaii. They hoped the warm weather would help her grandfather's arthritis. However, he passed away soon after. In 1905, they moved back to Seattle. Alice attended Seattle High School. She was an excellent student, especially in science, and graduated in 1910.
College Studies and First Publication
Alice then went to the University of Washington. She earned a bachelor's degree in pharmaceutical chemistry in 1912. Two years later, in 1914, she got a second bachelor's degree in pharmacy science. While studying, she worked with her pharmacy instructor, Williams Dehn. Together, they published a 10-page article. It was called "Benzoylations in Ether Solution" and appeared in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Publishing an article in such a respected science journal was a big achievement. It was especially rare for a woman, and even more so for a Black woman, at that time.
After graduating, Alice received many scholarship offers. She chose to study for her master's degree in chemistry at the College of Hawaii (now the University of Hawaii). For her master's thesis, she studied the chemical properties of the Kava plant. Because of her research on plant chemistry, a doctor named Harry T. Hollmann contacted her. He worked at the Leprosy Investigation Station in Hawaii. He asked Alice to study chaulmoogra oil and its chemical properties. This oil was the best treatment for leprosy for hundreds of years. Alice later found a way to make it much more effective.
In 1915, Alice Ball made history again. She became the first woman and first Black American to graduate with a master's degree from the College of Hawaii. She was also the first African American "research chemist and instructor" in the college's chemistry department.
Developing a Treatment for Leprosy
At the University of Hawaii, Alice Ball researched the chemicals in the Piper methysticum (kava) plant for her master's degree. Because of this work, Dr. Harry T. Hollmann from Kalihi Hospital in Hawaii reached out to her. He needed help with his research on treating leprosy.
The Challenge of Leprosy Treatment
Back then, leprosy, also known as Hansen's Disease, was a very serious illness. People diagnosed with it were often sent to the Hawaiian island of Molokai. They were expected to live out their lives there, with little hope of recovery. The best treatment available was chaulmoogra oil. This oil came from the seeds of the Hydnocarpus wightianus tree, found in India. It had been used in medicine since the 1300s.
However, chaulmoogra oil was not very effective, and using it had many problems. If applied to the skin, it was too sticky. If injected, the oil was thick and would clump under the skin. This caused painful blisters instead of being absorbed. Patients described it as if their skin was covered in "bubble wrap". Drinking the oil wasn't effective either. It tasted so bad that patients usually vomited it up.
The Ball Method Breakthrough
At just 23 years old, Alice Ball found a way to make the oil injectable and absorbable by the body. Her method involved taking specific chemical compounds called esters from the oil. She then changed them chemically. This created a substance that kept the oil's healing power but could be injected and absorbed by the body.
Sadly, Alice was unable to publish her amazing discovery before she passed away too soon. Arthur L. Dean, a chemist and Alice's graduate advisor, knew about her process. After Alice's death, Dean continued the research. By 1919, a college lab was making large amounts of the injectable chaulmoogra extract. Dean published details of the work and his findings. However, he did not give Alice Ball credit for her original discovery. Her name was not mentioned in any of Dean's published works on the extract. Instead, the technique was called "the Dean method."
In 1920, a Hawaiian doctor reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association that 78 patients had been released from Kalihi Hospital. They were discharged after being treated with injections of Alice Ball's modified chaulmoogra oil. The "Ball Method" involved preparing ethyl esters from the fatty acids in chaulmoogra oil. This made them suitable for injection and absorption into the body. While it didn't completely cure the disease, this injectable form was the only effective treatment for leprosy. It remained so until new drugs called sulfonamides were developed in the 1940s.
Giving Credit Where It's Due
Alice's colleague, Dr. Hollmann, tried to correct the mistake about who developed the extract. In 1922, he published a paper giving credit to Alice Ball. He called the injectable form of the oil the "Ball method" throughout his article. Hollmann compared Dean's method to Ball's. He wrote that he couldn't see any improvement in Dean's method over Alice's original technique. He explained that Alice's method was simpler and could be used by any doctor. Dean's method, he said, required very complex equipment that wasn't always available.
Despite Hollmann's efforts, Alice Ball was largely forgotten in scientific history for many years. In the 1970s, Kathryn Takara and Stanley Ali, who were professors at the University of Hawai'i, found records of Alice's research. They worked hard to make sure her important achievement was finally recognized.
Death
Alice Ball passed away on December 31, 1916, at the age of 24. She had become ill during her research. She returned to Seattle for treatment a few months before her death. A newspaper article from 1917 suggested that she might have been poisoned by chlorine gas. This could have happened while she was teaching in the lab. It was reported that she was showing students how to use a gas mask because World War I was happening. However, the exact cause of her death is not known. Her original death certificate was later changed to say tuberculosis.
Posthumous Awards and Recognition
Today, Alice Ball's incredible contributions are widely celebrated, and she has received numerous posthumous awards and honors. These recognitions highlight her scientific genius and her role as a pioneer for women and African Americans in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).
Here's a timeline of some of the significant recognitions she has received:
- 1922: The first recognition of Ball's work came six years after her death when Dr. Harry T. Hollmann's article was published, explicitly naming her discovery the "Ball Method."
- 2000: After the dedicated work of historians like Kathryn Takara and Stanley Ali, the University of Hawaiʻi honored Alice Ball by dedicating a plaque to her. This plaque is placed on the school's only chaulmoogra tree, located behind Bachman Hall, a symbolic gesture connecting her to the very plant central to her discovery.
- 2007: The University Board of Regents honored Alice Ball with a Medal of Distinction, which is the university's highest honor. This was a significant step in formally acknowledging her profound impact.
- March 2016: Hawaiʻi Magazine included Alice Ball on its prestigious list of the most influential women in Hawaiian history, recognizing her lasting legacy in the islands.
- 2017: Paul Wermager, who championed her story, established the "Alice Augusta Ball endowed scholarship". This scholarship supports students pursuing degrees in chemistry, biology, biochemistry, or microbiology, inspiring future generations of scientists in her name.
- 2018: A new park in Seattle's Greenwood neighborhood, her birthplace, was named after Alice Ball, providing a public space that honors her memory and achievements.
- 2019: The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine added Alice Ball's name to the frieze atop its main building. This is a highly prestigious honor, placing her alongside other scientific giants like Florence Nightingale and Marie Curie, in recognition of their immense contributions to science and global health research.
- February 2020: A short film titled The Ball Method premiered at the Pan African Film Festival, bringing her story to a wider audience through the power of cinema.
- November 6, 2020: A satellite named after her, ÑuSat 9 or "Alice" (COSPAR 2020-079A), was launched into space. This incredible tribute means that Alice Ball's name literally orbits the Earth, a testament to her global impact.
- February 28, 2022: Hawaii Governor David Ige signed a proclamation officially declaring February 28 as "Alice Augusta Ball Day" in Hawaii. This special recognition ceremony took place on the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa campus, next to the chaulmoogra tree planted in her honor, with many dignitaries and community members in attendance.
- December 2024: A significant new tribute was unveiled when a bust sculpture of Alice Ball was placed in the Hamilton Library at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, following a resolution by the UH Mānoa Faculty Senate. This permanent artistic tribute further solidifies her presence and inspiration on campus.
Legacy
Alice Ball's story is a powerful reminder of the importance of perseverance, scientific curiosity, and the fight for recognition. Her "Ball Method" remained the most effective treatment for leprosy until the development of sulfonamide drugs in the 1940s, saving countless lives and alleviating immense suffering. Beyond her scientific achievements, Alice Ball broke significant racial and gender barriers in academia and science, paving the way for future generations. Her posthumous awards and recognitions ensure that her name, her work, and her inspiring journey will continue to be celebrated and remembered for generations to come.
Alice Ball quotes
- "I work and work and still it seems I have nothing done."
See also
In Spanish: Alice Ball para niños
