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Aristotle and Eratosthenes are big names in geodesy. They got pretty close to measuring the size of the Earth. But the woman who got it done? She grew up a farmer, dreaming of something bigger. And her work changed how we see the world. \n\nDr. Gladys West didn\u2019t have much room for error in her quest for higher education. Marvin Jackson recounts the obstacles in her path\u2014and the challenges she faced in her early career. Gavin Schrock traces how geodesy progressed before Dr. West, and how foundational her work was for the GPS systems that followed. Paul Ceruzzi describes the state-of-the-art technology available at Dahlgren that helped Dr. West model the world. Todd Humphreys explains how that model, and the GPS systems that use it, support our way of life in more ways than we realize. \n\nIt\u2019s an astounding story that may never have been told if it hadn\u2019t been for Gwen James, Dr. West\u2019s Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority sister. She makes the case for telling these stories before they\u2019re lost\u2014because there are definitely more of them out there.