That person must have been surprised when the substance passed the test. It returned from the laboratory with more firmness than anything Stephanie Kwolek had made before.

Mizz Kwolek did not tell anyone that she had produced something new and strong. She said she was afraid there might have been a mistake. Repeated testing, however, did not find anything wrong. She and her group worked to improve the discovery. DuPont first manufactured large amounts of Kevlar in nineteen seventy-one. The material is found today in hundreds of products from sports equipment to window coverings.

Over the years, Stephanie Kwolek has received many awards. Her honors include membership in the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Today she says she loved her long career in chemistry. She says that considering the times, she was lucky to get the job.

(MUSIC)

BOB DOUGHTY:

Getting Kevlar placed in protective clothing resulted mainly from the work of Lester Shubin and Nicholas Montanarelli. Mister Shubin was educated in chemistry. He worked for the United States Army in the nineteen seventies. At the time, Mister Montanarelli was an Army project director. He was trained in engineering and psychology.

The two Americans were working at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. They were searching for a way to protect people in public life from gunfire. Mister Montanarelli knew about DuPont's recently developed fiber, and the two men decided to test it.