Jessie Marie Jacobs facts for kids
Jessie Marie Jacobs Muller Offermann (1890–1954) was an American mathematician. She also helped with important work in genetics.
Early Life and Education
Jessie M. Jacobs finished her first college degree at McPherson College. After teaching high school for a year, she received a special scholarship. This scholarship allowed her to study advanced mathematics at the University of Kansas. She earned her master's degree there in 1916.
She continued her studies and earned her Ph.D. in mathematics in 1919. This higher degree came from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her professor, Arthur Byron Coble, guided her studies.
A Career in Mathematics
After earning her Ph.D., Jessie became a professor at Rockford College. In 1920, she moved to the University of Texas at Austin. There, she worked as an instructor. She also helped edit the Texas Mathematics Teachers' Bulletin.
The University of Texas honors her and another colleague, Goldie Printis Horton, with an annual lecture series. This shows how important their work was.
Research and Family Life
While at the University of Texas, Jessie met Hermann Joseph Muller. He was a scientist who studied genetics. He asked for her help to use math to understand how flies change over time.
Jessie and Hermann married in 1923. Their son, David, was born the next year. David later became a mathematician and computer scientist. Jessie's job at the university ended in 1924. At that time, it was common for women to leave their careers when they became mothers.
Even though she stopped teaching, Jessie worked with her husband in his lab. They studied Drosophila, which are fruit flies. She even helped write an article with him. Hermann Muller later won a Nobel Prize for the research he did with Jessie's help during this time.
In 1933, Jessie joined Hermann Muller in Berlin and then in Leningrad. This was part of a special research trip he was on.
Later Years
Jessie divorced Hermann Muller in 1935. A few months later, she married Carlos Alberto Offermann. Carlos had worked in Hermann Muller's lab. After they married, Carlos went back to his job in Moscow. However, Jessie and her son David could not join him. For a time, her son David could not leave Texas.
Jessie earned money in Austin by tutoring college students in math. She also rented out a room in her home. She helped a group write a history of Travis County, too.
In 1938, Carlos Offermann returned to Austin. The family soon moved to Chicago. Jessie helped Carlos with his experiments for his own Ph.D. Jessie was diagnosed with tuberculosis, a serious illness. In 1940, the family moved to California, hoping she would get better. By 1942, her health got worse. She had to enter a special care facility. She was in this facility when she passed away in 1954.
