George Keith Batchelor FRS (8 March 1920 – 30 March 2000) was an Australian

applied mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

and fluid dynamicist. He was for many years a Professor of Applied Mathematics in the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and was founding head of the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP). In 1956 he founded the influential ''

Journal of Fluid Mechanics The ''Journal of Fluid Mechanics'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal in the field of fluid mechanics. It publishes original work on theoretical, computational, and experimental aspects of the subject. The journal is published by Cambridge U ...

'' which he edited for some forty years. Prior to Cambridge he studied at

Melbourne High School Melbourne High School is a government-funded single-sex academically selective secondary day school for boys, located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1905, the school caters for boys from Year 9 ...

and

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb ...

. As an applied mathematician (and for some years at Cambridge a co-worker with Sir Geoffrey Taylor in the field of

turbulent flow In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is fluid motion characterized by chaotic changes in pressure and flow velocity. It is in contrast to a laminar flow, which occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption between t ...

), he was a keen advocate of the need for physical understanding and sound experimental basis. His ''An Introduction to Fluid Dynamics'' (CUP, 1967) is still considered a classic of the subject, and has been re-issued in the ''Cambridge Mathematical Library'' series, following strong current demand. Unusual for an 'elementary' textbook of that era, it presented a treatment in which the properties of a real

viscous fluid In condensed matter physics and physical chemistry, the terms viscous liquid, supercooled liquid, and glassforming liquid are often used interchangeably to designate liquids that are at the same time highly viscous (see Viscosity of amorphous mate ...

were fully emphasised. He was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

in 1959. The

Batchelor Prize The Batchelor Prize is an award presented once every four years by the International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (IUTAM) for outstanding research in fluid dynamics. The prize of $25,000 is sponsored by the Journal of Fluid Mechanics ...

award, is named in his honour and is awarded every four years at the meeting of the International Congress on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics.

References

External links

*
''An Introduction to Fluid Dynamics'' by G. K. Batchelor
at Cambridge Mathematical Library.
Obituaries for George Batchelor (with portraits)
at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (

DAMTP The Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge comprises the Department of Pure Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics (DPMMS) and the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP). It is housed in the Centre for ...

) of the University of Cambridge website
Obituary
by Julian Hunt
Video recording of the K. Moffatt's lecture on life and work of George Batchelor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Batchelor, George 1920 births 2000 deaths Academics of the University of Cambridge Alumni of the University of Cambridge 20th-century Australian mathematicians Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows of the Royal Society Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences Fluid dynamicists Cambridge mathematicians People educated at Melbourne High School Royal Medal winners Australian textbook writers Mathematicians from Melbourne Journal of Fluid Mechanics editors