George Keith Batchelor FRS (8 March 1920 – 30 March 2000) was an Australian applied mathematician and fluid dynamicist. He was for many years a professor of applied mathematics in the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, 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 Un ...

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

Melbourne High School Melbourne High School is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Single-sex education, single-sex Selective school, academically selective secondary school, secondary day school for boys, located in the Melbourne suburb ...

and

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

. 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 Chaos theory, chaotic changes in pressure and flow velocity. It is in contrast to laminar flow, which occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers with no disrupt ...

), 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 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 (The Academy) 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, and other ...

in 1959. The Batchelor Prize 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) 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