Margaret C. Kielian grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, the third of four children. Her father was an accountant with the Army Corps of Engineers; her mother was a homemaker. She became interested in science at an early age.…

Hannele Ruohola-Baker was born in Kullaa, Finland—a small farming village—the younger of two siblings. Her mother was a banker who always had an interest in learning, though did not have many opportunities for education…