# Layers of Brilliance: The 'House of Magic' -- Episode Two

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/lost-women-of-science-4474223/layers-of-brilliance-the-house-of-magic-episode-two
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/lost-women-of-science-4474223/layers-of-brilliance-the-house-of-magic-episode-two.md
Podcast: [Lost Women of Science](https://stenobird.com/podcast/lost-women-of-science-4474223)
Published: 2026-02-05T03:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://play.prx.org/listen?ge=prx_413_9c1f6005-201f-4125-9a7b-99cbf0a976ee&uf=https%3A%2F%2Ffeed.lostwomenofscience.org
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/tracking.swap.fm/track/sblTq32fyWAjsHzze2LG/dovetail.prxu.org/_/413/9c1f6005-201f-4125-9a7b-99cbf0a976ee/Layers_of_Brilliance-Episode_02_Part_01.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/lost-women-of-science-4474223/episodes/layers-of-brilliance-the-house-of-magic-episode-two
Duration seconds: 2467

## Resource

Katharine Burr Blodgett arrives at The General Electric Company’s legendary research laboratory in Schenectady, New York, known as the “House of Magic.” She was just 20 years old when she entered a world built almost entirely for men. She joins as assistant to the brilliant and eccentric Irving Langmuir, a star chemist whose fundamental work in materials science and light bulbs would bring fame to him, and fortune to GE. The General Electric Company was an obvious choice for a brilliant young scientist. But was it the promise of scientific discoveries that drew Katharine to Schenectady or the need to confront the personal tragedy that marked the place where her own story began? Perhaps it was both. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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## Transcript

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