Geoffrey Ingram Taylor
Encyclopedia
Sir Geoffrey Ingram Taylor OM
(7 March 1886 – 27 June 1975) was a British physicist
, mathematician
and expert on fluid dynamics
and wave theory. His biographer and one-time student, George Batchelor
, described him as "one of the most notable scientists of this (the 20th) century".
and grandfather George Boole
). Taylor followed in the latter's footsteps reading mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge
. As a child he had become fascinated by science after attending the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
and had performed experiments using paint rollers and sticky-tape.
His first paper was on quanta
showing that Young's slit diffraction experiment
produced fringes even with feeble light sources such that less than one photon
was present at a time. He followed this up with work on shock wave
s, winning a Smith's Prize
. In 1910 he was elected to a Fellowship at Trinity College, and the following year he was appointed to a meteorology
post, becoming Reader
in Dynamical Meteorology. His work on turbulence
in the atmosphere led to the publication of "Turbulent motion in fluids," which won him the Adams Prize
in 1915.
In 1913 Taylor served as a meteorologist aboard the Ice Patrol
vessel Scotia, where his observations formed the basis of his later work on a theoretical model of turbulent
mixing of the air. At the outbreak of World War I
, he was sent to the Royal Aircraft Factory at Farnborough
to apply his knowledge to aircraft design, working, amongst other things, on the stress on propeller shafts. Not content to simply sit back and do the science, he also learned to fly aeroplanes and make parachute jumps.
After the war Taylor returned to Trinity and worked on an application of turbulent flow to oceanography
. He also worked on the problem of bodies passing through a rotating fluid. In 1923 he was appointed to a Royal Society
research professorship as a Yarrow Research Professor. This enabled him to stop teaching which he had been doing for the previous four years and which he both disliked and had no great aptitude for. It was in this period that he did his most wide-ranging work on the mechanics of fluids
and solids
including research on the deformation of crystalline materials which followed from his war work at Farnborough. He also produced another major contribution to turbulent flow, where he introduced a new approach through a statistical study of velocity fluctuations.
In 1934, Taylor, roughly contemporarily with Michael Polanyi
and Egon Orowan
, realised that the plastic
deformation of ductile materials could be explained in terms of the theory of dislocation
s developed by Vito Volterra
in 1905. The insight was critical in developing the modern science of solid mechanics
.
During World War II
Taylor again worked on applications of his expertise to military problems such as the propagation of blast wave
s, studying both waves in air and underwater explosion
s. These skills were put to the service of scientists at Los Alamos
when Taylor was sent to the United States as part of the British delegation to the Manhattan project
between 1944 and 1945. In 1944 he also received his knighthood and the Copley Medal
from the Royal Society
.
Taylor continued his research after the end of the War serving on the Aeronautical Research Committee
and working on the development of supersonic
aircraft. Though officially retiring in 1952 he continued researching for the next twenty years, concentrating on problems that could be attacked using simple equipment. This led to such advances as a method for measuring the second coefficient of viscosity
. Taylor devised an incompressible liquid with separated gas bubbles suspended in it. The dissipation of the gas in the liquid during expansion was a consequence of the shear viscosity of the liquid. Thus the bulk viscosity could easily be calculated. Other late work included the longitudinal dispersion in flow in tubes, movement through porous surfaces and the dynamics of sheets of liquids.
Aspects of Taylor's life often found expression in his work; his overriding interest in the movement of air and water, and by extension his studies of the movement of unicellular marine creatures and the weather, were related to his lifelong love of sailing
. In the 1930s he invented the 'CQR'
anchor which was both stronger and more manageable than any in use and which was used for all sorts of small craft including seaplane
s.
His final research paper was published in 1969, when he was 83. In it he resumed his interest in electrical activity in thunderstorm
s, as jets of conducting liquid motivated by electrical fields. The cone from which such jets are observed is called the Taylor cone
for his namesake. In the same year Taylor was appointed to the Order of Merit
. He suffered a stroke in 1972 which effectively put an end to his work; he died in Cambridge in 1975.
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit is a British dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture...
(7 March 1886 – 27 June 1975) was a British physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
, mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
and expert on fluid dynamics
Fluid dynamics
In physics, fluid dynamics is a sub-discipline of fluid mechanics that deals with fluid flow—the natural science of fluids in motion. It has several subdisciplines itself, including aerodynamics and hydrodynamics...
and wave theory. His biographer and one-time student, George Batchelor
George Batchelor
George Keith Batchelor FRS was an Australian applied mathematician and fluid dynamicist. He was for many years the Professor of Applied Mathematics in the University of Cambridge, and was founding head of the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics...
, described him as "one of the most notable scientists of this (the 20th) century".
Biography
Taylor was born in St. John's Wood, London. His father was an artist, and his mother, Margaret Boole, came from a family of mathematicians (his aunt was Alicia Boole StottAlicia Boole Stott
Alicia Boole Stott was the third daughter of George Boole and Mary Everest Boole, born in Cork, Ireland. Before marrying Walter Stott, an actuary, in 1890, she was known as Alicia Boole...
and grandfather George Boole
George Boole
George Boole was an English mathematician and philosopher.As the inventor of Boolean logic—the basis of modern digital computer logic—Boole is regarded in hindsight as a founder of the field of computer science. Boole said,...
). Taylor followed in the latter's footsteps reading mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
. As a child he had become fascinated by science after attending the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures are a series of lectures on a single topic, which have been held at the Royal Institution in London each year since 1825. The lectures present scientific subjects to a general audience, including young people, in an informative and entertaining manner....
and had performed experiments using paint rollers and sticky-tape.
His first paper was on quanta
Quantum
In physics, a quantum is the minimum amount of any physical entity involved in an interaction. Behind this, one finds the fundamental notion that a physical property may be "quantized," referred to as "the hypothesis of quantization". This means that the magnitude can take on only certain discrete...
showing that Young's slit diffraction experiment
Double-slit experiment
The double-slit experiment, sometimes called Young's experiment, is a demonstration that matter and energy can display characteristics of both waves and particles...
produced fringes even with feeble light sources such that less than one photon
Photon
In physics, a photon is an elementary particle, the quantum of the electromagnetic interaction and the basic unit of light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation. It is also the force carrier for the electromagnetic force...
was present at a time. He followed this up with work on shock wave
Shock wave
A shock wave is a type of propagating disturbance. Like an ordinary wave, it carries energy and can propagate through a medium or in some cases in the absence of a material medium, through a field such as the electromagnetic field...
s, winning a Smith's Prize
Smith's Prize
The Smith's Prize was the name of each of two prizes awarded annually to two research students in theoretical Physics, mathematics and applied mathematics at the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England.- History :...
. In 1910 he was elected to a Fellowship at Trinity College, and the following year he was appointed to a meteorology
Meteorology
Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...
post, becoming Reader
Reader (academic rank)
The title of Reader in the United Kingdom and some universities in the Commonwealth nations like Australia and New Zealand denotes an appointment for a senior academic with a distinguished international reputation in research or scholarship...
in Dynamical Meteorology. His work on turbulence
Turbulence
In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is a flow regime characterized by chaotic and stochastic property changes. This includes low momentum diffusion, high momentum convection, and rapid variation of pressure and velocity in space and time...
in the atmosphere led to the publication of "Turbulent motion in fluids," which won him the Adams Prize
Adams Prize
The Adams Prize is awarded each year by the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge and St John's College to a young, UK based mathematician for first-class international research in the Mathematical Sciences....
in 1915.
In 1913 Taylor served as a meteorologist aboard the Ice Patrol
International Ice Patrol
The International Ice Patrol is an organization with the purpose of monitoring the presence of icebergs in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans and reporting their movements for safety purposes. It is operated by United States Coast Guard but is funded by the 13 nations interested in trans-Atlantic...
vessel Scotia, where his observations formed the basis of his later work on a theoretical model of turbulent
Turbulence
In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is a flow regime characterized by chaotic and stochastic property changes. This includes low momentum diffusion, high momentum convection, and rapid variation of pressure and velocity in space and time...
mixing of the air. At the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he was sent to the Royal Aircraft Factory at Farnborough
Farnborough, Hampshire
-History:Name changes: Ferneberga ; Farnburghe, Farenberg ; Farnborowe, Fremborough, Fameborough .Tower Hill, Cove: There is substantial evidence...
to apply his knowledge to aircraft design, working, amongst other things, on the stress on propeller shafts. Not content to simply sit back and do the science, he also learned to fly aeroplanes and make parachute jumps.
After the war Taylor returned to Trinity and worked on an application of turbulent flow to oceanography
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
. He also worked on the problem of bodies passing through a rotating fluid. In 1923 he was appointed to a Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
research professorship as a Yarrow Research Professor. This enabled him to stop teaching which he had been doing for the previous four years and which he both disliked and had no great aptitude for. It was in this period that he did his most wide-ranging work on the mechanics of fluids
Fluid mechanics
Fluid mechanics is the study of fluids and the forces on them. Fluid mechanics can be divided into fluid statics, the study of fluids at rest; fluid kinematics, the study of fluids in motion; and fluid dynamics, the study of the effect of forces on fluid motion...
and solids
Solid mechanics
Solid mechanics is the branch of mechanics, physics, and mathematics that concerns the behavior of solid matter under external actions . It is part of a broader study known as continuum mechanics. One of the most common practical applications of solid mechanics is the Euler-Bernoulli beam equation...
including research on the deformation of crystalline materials which followed from his war work at Farnborough. He also produced another major contribution to turbulent flow, where he introduced a new approach through a statistical study of velocity fluctuations.
In 1934, Taylor, roughly contemporarily with Michael Polanyi
Michael Polanyi
Michael Polanyi, FRS was a Hungarian–British polymath, who made important theoretical contributions to physical chemistry, economics, and the theory of knowledge...
and Egon Orowan
Egon Orowan
Egon Orowan was a Hungarian/British/U.S. physicist and metallurgist.-Life:Orowan was born in the Óbuda district of Budapest. His father, Berthold, was a mechanical engineer and factory manager, and his mother, Josze Spitzer Ságvári was the daughter of an impoverished land owner...
, realised that the plastic
Plasticity (physics)
In physics and materials science, plasticity describes the deformation of a material undergoing non-reversible changes of shape in response to applied forces. For example, a solid piece of metal being bent or pounded into a new shape displays plasticity as permanent changes occur within the...
deformation of ductile materials could be explained in terms of the theory of dislocation
Dislocation
In materials science, a dislocation is a crystallographic defect, or irregularity, within a crystal structure. The presence of dislocations strongly influences many of the properties of materials...
s developed by Vito Volterra
Vito Volterra
Vito Volterra was an Italian mathematician and physicist, known for his contributions to mathematical biology and integral equations....
in 1905. The insight was critical in developing the modern science of solid mechanics
Solid mechanics
Solid mechanics is the branch of mechanics, physics, and mathematics that concerns the behavior of solid matter under external actions . It is part of a broader study known as continuum mechanics. One of the most common practical applications of solid mechanics is the Euler-Bernoulli beam equation...
.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Taylor again worked on applications of his expertise to military problems such as the propagation of blast wave
Blast wave
A blast wave in fluid dynamics is the pressure and flow resulting from the deposition of a large amount of energy in a small very localised volume. The flow field can be approximated as a lead shock wave, followed by a 'self-similar' subsonic flow field. In simpler terms, a blast wave is an area of...
s, studying both waves in air and underwater explosion
Underwater explosion
An underwater explosion, also known as an UNDEX, is an explosion beneath the surface of water. The type of explosion may be chemical or nuclear...
s. These skills were put to the service of scientists at Los Alamos
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory is a United States Department of Energy national laboratory, managed and operated by Los Alamos National Security , located in Los Alamos, New Mexico...
when Taylor was sent to the United States as part of the British delegation to the Manhattan project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
between 1944 and 1945. In 1944 he also received his knighthood and the Copley Medal
Copley Medal
The Copley Medal is an award given by the Royal Society of London for "outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science, and alternates between the physical sciences and the biological sciences"...
from the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
.
Taylor continued his research after the end of the War serving on the Aeronautical Research Committee
Aeronautical Research Committee
The Aeronautical Research Committee was a UK government committee established in 1919 in order to coordinate aeronautical research and education following World War I...
and working on the development of supersonic
Supersonic
Supersonic speed is a rate of travel of an object that exceeds the speed of sound . For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C this speed is approximately 343 m/s, 1,125 ft/s, 768 mph or 1,235 km/h. Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound are often...
aircraft. Though officially retiring in 1952 he continued researching for the next twenty years, concentrating on problems that could be attacked using simple equipment. This led to such advances as a method for measuring the second coefficient of viscosity
Viscosity
Viscosity is a measure of the resistance of a fluid which is being deformed by either shear or tensile stress. In everyday terms , viscosity is "thickness" or "internal friction". Thus, water is "thin", having a lower viscosity, while honey is "thick", having a higher viscosity...
. Taylor devised an incompressible liquid with separated gas bubbles suspended in it. The dissipation of the gas in the liquid during expansion was a consequence of the shear viscosity of the liquid. Thus the bulk viscosity could easily be calculated. Other late work included the longitudinal dispersion in flow in tubes, movement through porous surfaces and the dynamics of sheets of liquids.
Aspects of Taylor's life often found expression in his work; his overriding interest in the movement of air and water, and by extension his studies of the movement of unicellular marine creatures and the weather, were related to his lifelong love of sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
. In the 1930s he invented the 'CQR'
Anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the vessel from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ancora, which itself comes from the Greek ἄγκυρα .Anchors can either be temporary or permanent...
anchor which was both stronger and more manageable than any in use and which was used for all sorts of small craft including seaplane
Seaplane
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water. Seaplanes that can also take off and land on airfields are a subclass called amphibian aircraft...
s.
His final research paper was published in 1969, when he was 83. In it he resumed his interest in electrical activity in thunderstorm
Thunderstorm
A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm, a lightning storm, thundershower or simply a storm is a form of weather characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere known as thunder. The meteorologically assigned cloud type associated with the...
s, as jets of conducting liquid motivated by electrical fields. The cone from which such jets are observed is called the Taylor cone
Taylor cone
A Taylor cone refers to the cone observed in electrospinning, electrospraying and hydrodynamic spray processes from which a jet of charged particles emanates above a threshold voltage...
for his namesake. In the same year Taylor was appointed to the Order of Merit
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit is a British dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture...
. He suffered a stroke in 1972 which effectively put an end to his work; he died in Cambridge in 1975.
See also
- Buckingham π theorem, for an example of Taylor's computation of the energy released by the Trinity atomic bomb
- Taylor coneTaylor coneA Taylor cone refers to the cone observed in electrospinning, electrospraying and hydrodynamic spray processes from which a jet of charged particles emanates above a threshold voltage...
- Taylor dispersionTaylor dispersionTaylor dispersion is an effect in fluid mechanics in which a shear flow can increase the effective diffusivity of a species. Essentially, the shear acts to smear out the concentration distribution in the direction of the flow, enhancing the rate at which it spreads in that direction. The effect is...
- Taylor numberTaylor numberIn fluid dynamics, the Taylor number is a dimensionless quantity that characterizes the importance of centrifugal "forces" or so-called inertial forces due to rotation of a fluid about an axis, relative to viscous forces. The typical context of the Taylor number is in characterization of the...
- Taylor vortex
- Taylor–Couette flowTaylor–Couette flowIn fluid dynamics, the Taylor–Couette flow consists of a viscous fluid confined in the gap between two rotating cylinders. For low angular velocities, measured by the Reynolds number Re, the flow is steady and purely azimuthal. This basic state is known as circular Couette flow, after Maurice...
- Taylor–Goldstein equationTaylor–Goldstein equationThe Taylor–Goldstein equation is an ordinary differential equation used in the fields of geophysical fluid dynamics, and more generally in fluid dynamics, in presence of quasi-2D flows. It describes the dynamics of the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability, subject to buoyancy forces , for stably-stratified...
- Rayleigh–Taylor instability
- Taylor–Proudman theoremTaylor–Proudman theoremIn fluid mechanics, the Taylor–Proudman theorem states that when a solid body is moved slowly within a fluid that is steadily rotated with a high \Omega, the fluid velocity will be uniform along any line parallel to the axis of rotation...
- Taylor-Green vortexTaylor-Green vortexIn fluid dynamics, the Taylor–Green vortex is a 2-dimensional, unsteady flow of a decaying vortex, which has the exact closed form solution of incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in Cartesian coordinates...
- Taylor microscaleTaylor microscaleThe Taylor microscale is a length scale used to characterize a turbulent fluid flow. The Taylor microscale is the largest length scale at which fluid viscosity significantly affects the dynamics of turbulent eddies in the flow. This length scale is traditionally applied to turbulent flow which can...
Obituaries
- Brian PippardBrian PippardSir Alfred Brian Pippard, ScD, FRS , was a British physicist. He was Cavendish Professor of Physics from 1971 until 1984 and an Honorary Fellow of Clare Hall, University of Cambridge, of which he was the first President...
, "Sir Geoffrey Taylor", Physics TodayPhysics TodayPhysics Today, created in 1948, is the membership journal of the American Institute of Physics. It is provided to 130,000 members of twelve physics societies, including the American Physical Society...
28(9), September 1975, p. 67, : (pdf).
External links
- A Real Media stream of Taylor's Hydrodynamic demo courtesy of the folks at MIT
- Classical Physics Through the Work of GI Taylor. Course given on Taylor's work
- Article on the course above
- G.I. Taylor Medal of the Society of Engineering Science