Women Of NASA

Take Our Daughters To Work Day
Forum with Joyce Dever
April 25, 2002

[ Lori/QuestChatHost - 178 - 18:11:23 ]
This chat room has been created to accept your questions for the April 25 forum in honor of Take Our Daughters to Work Day. This year's focus is on the Centennial of Flight and women's role in flight's history. Questions may be placed here at any time. They will be held in a queue until the time of the webcast and will not be visible until that time. Please do not repeat your questions.

[ Lori/QuestChatHost - 179 - 18:12:28 ]
The Forum will be open from 7:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. PDT / 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. CDT / 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. EDT. You may join in at any time to post questions or read responses. Each mentor will answer questions specific to their work and the many aspects of their accomplishments to the NASA legacy, flight, aeronautics and space. This chat room is for questions for Joyce Dever. You can read her bio at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/people/bios/women/jd.html.

[ Lori/QuestChatHost - 180 - 18:12:38 ]
Please be sure and identify yourself -- Johnny/6th/TX or Pam/4th/Mr.Johnson -- at the beginning of your question. Remember, don't use your last name. For example -- Jesse/6th/Mr.Green - How many people live on the ISS?

[ Joyce - 189 - 19:33:47 ]
RE: How many children do you have?
I have 2 daughters, Megan is 6 and in first grade, and Sarah is 3.

[ Joyce - 190 - 19:40:52 ]
RE: Dear Ms Joyce, Do you enjoy being an engineer? I would enjoy being one and I've always wanted to be an aeronautic engineer. Do you think we will be able to go further into space in my lifetime. -Hannah@mcgehee school-
Dear Hannah, I enjoy being an engineer, because I get to solve problems related to space materials, I get to work with very talented individuals from a variety of backgrounds, and I get to travel to interesting places and meet interesting people when I make presentations at conferences. I believe the technology is there to send humans to Mars. It's a matter of politics/budget priorities as to whether it will happen in either of our lifetimes. I hope it does. Humans are explorers by nature - we have "discovered" the vast majority of planet Earth, so it only makes sense to try to expand our discovery through human exploration beyond Earth.

[ Joyce - 191 - 19:58:16 ]
RE: HI my name is Nasar and i am in the 9th grade in the high school of science and technology. Do you believe that the sun heating up could cause global warming?
Hi Nasar, by the time you finish high school, I'm sure you'll be able to answer that better than I can :) Right now, loss of the ozone layer seems to get the most attention as the theory for global warming. I do know that there are solar flares and storms that produce damaging radiation and these vary over the course of an 11-year solar cycle where the flares are most frequent and intense during the period called "solar maximum" (which last occurred last year) and least frequent and intense during the "solar minimum" (next projected for around 2008). According to my reference book "The Space Environment" (by Tribble), there are very small changes in solar output from cycle to cycle, and, in fact, it seems to show that the number of sun spots was greater for the solar maximum around 1960 than for the one around 1990. At this point, it appears that the sun itself is rather stable from cycle to cycle, but varies within each 11-year period.

[ Joyce - 192 - 20:06:40 ]
RE: Hi, How does your work effect youree family life. Does it get in the way with the time that you need with youre kids. do youre children like youre job? HAve you ever taken them to work to let them see what ypu do for a living? -Linzi Mcgehee school
Hi Linzi, I do sometimes wish I had more time with my children, but I am usually home by 5:30, so we have some evening time together, and I never work on weekends. Megan enjoys school and 3 days a week her "Grammy" picks her up and spends some after-school time with her 'til I get home. My husband Tim leaves work early on Mondays and is home on Fridays so he gets to spend some extra time with the girls. Sarah goes to the child care center here at NASA. She enjoys the other kids and the activities they do. I have brought Megan to work before, and she loves meeting the people in my office and making pictures using my special rulers and markers :) She knows my job has to do with space, which she thinks is cool, and my husband and I have given presentations to her class before. I always encourage my girls to be curious and make sure they know that they can grow up to pursue their dreams, whatever they are.

[ Joyce - 193 - 20:13:55 ]
RE: Dear Joyce Dever, What inspired you to become a materials engineer? I think that that would be an interesting job, do you like your job? What is your favorite thing to do when you are working? Do you have any kids, if so how many? I have 2 little sisters and no brothers. Do you enjoy being a materials engineer? Thank you for answering my questions!
I always liked science, so I went to college for a degree in chemistry. While I was completing my degree, I had the chance to work at NASA. After I graduated with my Bachelor's degree in chemistry, I got a job here at NASA and I decided to get a Master's degree in materials science and engineering so I could better do my job which was studying how space affected materials. I really like my job and would recommend it! My girls are Megan (6) and Sarah (3). My favorite thing to do at work? - that's hard because I like lots! I like working with the college students who come here to work and learn, and I like to give presentations on my research at conferences in places where I've never been before (traveling is always fun!).

[ Lori/QuestChatHost - 194 - 18:12:38 ]
Thanks Joyce for sharing with us today :-)