View full lesson: ed.ted.com/lessons/the-exceptional-life-of-benjamin-banneker-rose-margaret-ekeng-itua Born in 1731 to freed slaves on a farm in Baltimore, Benjamin Banneker was obsessed with math and science. And his appetite for knowledge only grew as he taught himself astronomy, mathematics, engineering, and the study of the natural world. Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua details the numerous accomplishments of Benjamin Banneker. Lesson by Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua, animation by Jun Zee Myers.