Timothy Trevor West (8 May 1938 – 30 October 2012) was an Irish mathematician, academic and politician.

Biography

He was born on 8 May 1938 in

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, the eldest of four sons of Timothy Roberts West, headmaster of

Midleton College Midleton College is an independent co-educational boarding and day school in Midleton, County Cork, Ireland. In past centuries it has also been called Midleton School. Although founded in 1696, the school did not open until 1717. It went thr ...

, and Dorothy West (née McNeill). He was educated at Midleton College, and

The High School, Dublin The High School is a 12–18 Mixed-sex education, mixed, Church of Ireland, Independent school, independent secondary school in Rathgar, Dublin, Ireland. It was established in 1870 at Harcourt Street before moving to Rathgar in 1971. It amal ...

. West was a graduate of

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

(TCD), where he was elected a scholar, and of 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 ...

. In 1970 he was elected a Fellow of Trinity College Dublin and was also an associate professor of mathematics, Junior Dean, and a great supporter of sport at Trinity. He was also a Member of the

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the natural sciences, arts, literature, and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned society and one of its le ...

. He subsequently was a Senior Fellow of TCD. On 19 November 1970, West was elected to

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

, at a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

for the

Dublin University The University of Dublin (), corporately named as The Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a research university located in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dublin, whi ...

constituency caused by the death of

Owen Sheehy-Skeffington Owen Lancelot Sheehy-Skeffington (19 May 1909 – 7 June 1970) was an Irish university lecturer and senator. The son of pacifists, feminists and socialists Francis and Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, he was politically likeminded and as a member of th ...

. After his election, he established a reputation as one of the few liberal voices in the Seanad. He was re-elected to the Seanad in 1973 and 1977, lost his seat at the 1981 Seanad election but was re-elected in 1982, then lost his seat again at the 1983 Seanad election. With John T. Lewis and D. McQuillan, West drew up the constitution of the Irish Mathematical Society. He was the author of ''The Bold Collegians'', a history of sport in Trinity College, and was an avid follower of Trinity College's sports programs. He also wrote a history of Midleton College, published for its tercentenary in 1996.

Memorials

An event was held in his memory at the

in December 2013 where a memorial issue of the Mathematical Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy was presented. A book of essays celebrating his life, ''Trevor West : The Bold Collegian'', was published in October 2016. On 14 September 2018, a new sports hall in Midleton College dedicated to the memory of Trevor West was opened by the Provost of Trinity College, Patrick Prendergast.

Publications

*Trevor West, with Rien Kaashoek, ''Locally compact semi-algebras : with applications to spectral theory of positive operators'' (Amsterdam; London: North-Holland Publishing Co., 1974) *Trevor West, ''The Bold Collegians. The Development of Sport in Trinity College Dublin'' (Dublin, 1991) *Trevor West, ''Midleton College, 1696–1996: A Tercentenary History'' (Midleton: Midleton College, 1996)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:West, Trevor 1938 births 2012 deaths Academics of Trinity College Dublin Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Fellows of Trinity College Dublin Independent members of Seanad Éireann 20th-century Irish mathematicians Members of the Royal Irish Academy Members of Seanad Éireann for Dublin University Members of the 12th Seanad Members of the 13th Seanad Members of the 14th Seanad Members of the 16th Seanad People educated at Midleton College People from Midleton Scholars of Trinity College Dublin Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Scientists from County Cork People educated at The High School, Dublin

Biography

Memorials

Publications

Further reading

References

External links