THE SUN QUEEN | Chapter 1 | AMERICAN EXPERIENCE | PBS

Across a remarkable span of nearly half a century, Mária Telkes deployed her exceptional talents as a chemical engineer and inventor to exploit solar energy, culminating in her creation of the first solar-heated dwelling deemed modern and functional. Her journey at MIT was marked by undermining and obstructions from her male superior and peers, yet her resilience never waned in the face of these challenges. Captured in the essence of determination, the individual stands with a poised gaze, embodying both grace and resolve. Draped in a fur coat that suggests a period aesthetic, she looks upward, possibly reflecting on her ambitions or the vast potential of her field, resonant of the very perseverance that marked her storied career.

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