Carolyn Beatrice Parker
It was a silvery metal
in a dark room
blue-skewed glow
excited by decay
Did Carolyn Parker
hold the polonium in her hands
did she ever breathe it in?
working government top-secret
with this radioactive element
—The Dayton Project—
research and development
during World War II
part of the Manhattan Project
building the first atomic bombs
Parker
the first Black woman in the U.S.
to have a postgraduate degree
in physics
two master's—the other in mathematics
dedicated, hardworking, afire
little is known of her work
within the team constructing secrets:
polonium-based neutron
initiators kindling pressure
Dayton Project employees
weren’t allowed to eat in processing areas
scrubbing down before leaving
(some had contaminated bobby pins)
she became an assistant professor
in physics at Fisk University
close to completing a doctorate at MIT
so much more to discover
from this sharp ascending scientist
her time far too short
atomic number 84
leukaemia at age 48
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