In the 1970s, Marjorie Rice, a San Diego housewife and mother of five, was at her kitchen table when she uncovered numerous new geometric patterns, which experts had believed to be impossible. With no education beyond high school, Rice had, by 1976, discovered 58 unique types of pentagonal tiles, the majority of which were previously unknown. Her highest educational qualification was a high school diploma earned in 1939, which included just a single course in general mathematics.