Francis John Welsh Whipple

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Francis John Welsh Whipple (17 March 1876 – 25 September 1943) was an English mathematician and meteorologist. From 1925 to 1939 he was superintendent of the Kew Observatory.

Biography[]

Whipple was the son of Kew Observatory employees George Matthew Whipple and Elizabeth Beckley, an astronomical photographer.[1]

Whipple attended Willington Preparatory School in Putney, where in 1888 he won a scholarship at Merchant Taylors' School.[2] From here he obtained a scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge in 1895, where he was placed Second Wrangler in the Mathematical Tripos of 1897.[3]

In 1899, he showed that bicycles could be self stable.[4][5][6]

From 1899–1912 he was an assistant master at Merchant Taylors' School, and then worked at the Meteorological Office from 1912.[7] From 1925 he was Assistant-Director of the Meteorological Office and Superintendent of Kew Observatory, retiring in 1939.[3] He also served as president of the Royal Meteorological Society from 1936 to 1937.[8]

Francis Whipple had an older brother, Robert, whose collection of scientific instruments and books was the basis of the Whipple Museum of the History of Science in Cambridge.[9]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Macdonald, Lee (9 March 2017). "'Work peculiarly fitting to a lady': Elizabeth Beckley and the early years of solar photography". conscicom.org. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  2. ^ C. P. B. Hodgson (1965). The First Eighty Years of Willington School. Willington School, Colinette Road, London SW15. p. 3.
  3. ^ a b Who Was Who 1941–1950. Bloomsbury Publishing, London. 1980. ISBN 0-7136-2131-1.
  4. ^ J. D. G. Kooijman; J. P. Meijaard; J. M. Papadopoulos; A. Ruina; A. L. Schwab (April 15, 2011). "A bicycle can be self-stable without gyrosocpic or caster effects" (PDF). Science. 332 (6027): 339–342. Bibcode:2011Sci...332..339K. doi:10.1126/science.1201959. PMID 21493856. S2CID 12296078. Retrieved 2011-04-16.
  5. ^ Roger Highfield (Jun 2007). "The mathematical way to ride a bike". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2010-11-24. Retrieved 2011-04-16.
  6. ^ J. P. Meijaard; J. M. Papadopoulos; A. Ruina; A. L. Schwab (2007). "Linearized dynamics equations for the balance and steer of a bicycle: a benchmark and review" (PDF). Proceedings of the Royal Society A. 463 (2084): 1955–1982. Bibcode:2007RSPSA.463.1955M. doi:10.1098/rspa.2007.1857. S2CID 18309860.
  7. ^ "Whipple, Francis John Welsh (WHPL894FJ)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  8. ^ "List of Presidents". Royal Meteorological Society. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  9. ^ Who Was Who 1951–1960. A & C Black, London. 1984. ISBN 0-7136-2598-8.

External links[]

  • W. N., Bailey (1943). "Francis John Welsh Whipple". Journal of the London Mathematical Society. s1-18 (4): 249–256. doi:10.1112/jlms/s1-18.4.249. Obituary of Francis John Welsh Whipple by W. N. Bailey: J. London Math. Soc., October 1943; s1-18: 249 - 256


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