But the change is incomplete, and the rate of change is not guaranteed.

The recovery of overlooked histories is work that requires sustained effort, sustained resources, and sustained commitment — and the institutions that perform this work are subject to the same social and political pressures that created the original obscurity.

Mary Kenner invented five things that deserved to be in the world.

She did this in a context that was specifically designed to prevent people like her from succeeding.

She succeeded anyway, in the specific terms of holding the patents that were her legal right, and she left a record that researchers, educators, and storytellers have been able to find and amplify.