Max Mason

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Max Mason
Max Mason.jpg
Max Mason
BornOctober 26, 1877
DiedMarch 22, 1961 (1961-03-23) (aged 83)
NationalityUnited States
Known fordifferential equations
calculus of variations
electromagnetism
Mason–Weaver equation
Scientific career
Fieldsmathematics
InstitutionsUniversity of Chicago
Rockefeller Foundation
Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden receives his doctor's diploma as an honorary doctorate from the University of Chicago from the university's president, Professor Max Mason, 1926

Charles Max Mason (October 26, 1877 – March 22, 1961), better known as Max Mason, was an American mathematician. Mason was president of the University of Chicago (1925–1928) and president of the Rockefeller Foundation (1929–1936).[1][2]

Mason's mathematical research interests included differential equations, the calculus of variations, and electromagnetic theory.[3]

Education[]

  • B.Litt., 1898, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Ph.D., Mathematics, University of Göttingen, 1903.
    • Dissertation: "Randwertaufgaben bei gewöhnlichen Differentialgleichungen" (Boundary value functions with ordinary differential equations)
    • Advisor: Hilbert

Career[]

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1903–1904, Instructor of Mathematics.
  • Yale University, 1904–1908, Assistant Professor of Mathematics.
  • University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1908–1909, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Associate Professor of Mathematics.
  • University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1909–1925, Professor of Physics.
    • National Research Council, 1917–1919, Submarine Committee. (Invented a submarine detection device, which was the basis for sonar detectors used in World War II.)
  • University of Chicago, 1925–1928, President.
  • Rockefeller Foundation, 1928–1929, Director, Natural Sciences Division.
  • Rockefeller Foundation, 1929–1936, President.
  • Palomar Observatory (California), 1936–1949, Chairman of the team directing the construction of the observatory.

On May 2, 1945 he appeared on Edgar Bergen's radio show to chat about the new observatory and trade jokes with Charlie McCarthy.[4]

Notes and references[]

  1. ^ "Obituary: Max Mason". Physics Today. 14 (5): 78. May 1961. doi:10.1063/1.3057580. Archived from the original on 2013-09-21.
  2. ^ Weaver, Warren. "mason-max.pdf" (PDF). NasOnline. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  3. ^ "Max Mason - Biography".
  4. ^ "Radio This Week", The Kansas City Star, April 25, 1948, p. 109. Newspapers.com (subscription needed), accessed 2014-04-20.

External links[]

Academic offices
Preceded by
Ernest DeWitt Burton
President of the University of Chicago
1925–1928
Succeeded by
Robert Maynard Hutchins
Non-profit organization positions
Preceded by
George E. Vincent
President of the Rockefeller Foundation
September 20, 1969 – May 30, 1936
Succeeded by
Raymond B. Fosdick


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