Betty Lou Raskin | |
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Born | April 9, 1924 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
Died | December 17, 2010 Pikesville, Maryland, U.S. |
Occupation | Chemist |
Known for | Creation of 'Holey Smoke' |
Betty Lou Raskin (April 9, 1924[1] – December 17, 2010) was an American chemist who researched plastics in the 1950s and 1960s. A Marylander, she grew up in Baltimore and obtained a chemistry degree to begin work at the radiation laboratory of Johns Hopkins University.
One of the primary products she developed while researching polystyrene was a foamed version that she turned into an opaque smoke good for military signaling, skywriting, and potential contamination protection. A part of multiple scientific organizations, she used her membership to promote women in science and spoke out against the cultural discrimination of intelligent and successful women.