William Morgan (scientist)
Encyclopedia
William Morgan, FRS (26 May 1750 – 4 May 1833) was a Welsh
physician
, physicist
and statistician
, who is considered the father of modern actuarial science
.
He was born in Bridgend
, Glamorganshire, son to physician William Morgan and Sarah, née Price. His brother was George Cadogan Morgan
. At eighteen he came to London for medical training at Guy's Hospital
, working also as an apothecary
to pay his way. He did not complete his training, but after one year returned to Bridgend to join his father's practice. He was not popular with his father's patients: they thought him inexperienced and they resented receiving treatment from someone with a deformity—Morgan suffered from a club foot. After his father's death he left medicine and, on the recommendation of his mother's brother, in 1774 was appointed Assistant Actuary
of The Equitable Life Assurance Society. The next year, after the death of John Pocock, he was elected Actuary. By the time he retired in 1830, 56 years later at the age of 80, he laid the foundations of the actuarial profession
—in fact the term "actuarial" became attached to the profession because of his title.
He won the Copley Medal
in 1789 for his two papers on the values of Reversions and Survivorships, printed in the last two volumes of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
, in the field of actuarial science
:
He was elected a Fellow of the Society in May of the following year.
Advised by Joseph Priestly, a family friend, he developed an interest in scientific experimentation and is credited with being the first to record the "invisible light" produced when a current is passed through a partly evacuated
glass tube: "the first x-ray tube".
Later in life, through his uncle, Richard Price
, he became friends with noted radicals
, including Tom Paine and Francis Burdett. He escaped with only a warning when in 1794 the authorities rounded up members of the movement and charged them with treason.
Other publications:
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, 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...
and statistician
Statistician
A statistician is someone who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. The core of that work is to measure, interpret, and describe the world and human activity patterns within it...
, who is considered the father of modern actuarial science
Actuarial science
Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in the insurance and finance industries. Actuaries are professionals who are qualified in this field through education and experience...
.
He was born in Bridgend
Bridgend
Bridgend is a town in the Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of the capital, Cardiff. The river crossed by the original bridge, which gave the town its name, is the River Ogmore but the River Ewenny also passes to the south of the town...
, Glamorganshire, son to physician William Morgan and Sarah, née Price. His brother was George Cadogan Morgan
George Cadogan Morgan
George Cadogan Morgan was a Welsh dissenting minister and scientist.hereditary principles and defending the idea of absolute sovereignty of the people. By this time, his uncle had died but, instead of succeeding him in his ministry in Hackney, Morgan moved to Southgate and set up a school there...
. At eighteen he came to London for medical training at Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital is a large NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in south east London, England. It is administratively a part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. It is a large teaching hospital and is home to the King's College London School of Medicine...
, working also as an apothecary
Apothecary
Apothecary is a historical name for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses materia medica to physicians, surgeons and patients — a role now served by a pharmacist and some caregivers....
to pay his way. He did not complete his training, but after one year returned to Bridgend to join his father's practice. He was not popular with his father's patients: they thought him inexperienced and they resented receiving treatment from someone with a deformity—Morgan suffered from a club foot. After his father's death he left medicine and, on the recommendation of his mother's brother, in 1774 was appointed Assistant Actuary
Actuary
An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. Actuaries provide expert assessments of financial security systems, with a focus on their complexity, their mathematics, and their mechanisms ....
of The Equitable Life Assurance Society. The next year, after the death of John Pocock, he was elected Actuary. By the time he retired in 1830, 56 years later at the age of 80, he laid the foundations of the actuarial profession
Actuary
An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. Actuaries provide expert assessments of financial security systems, with a focus on their complexity, their mathematics, and their mechanisms ....
—in fact the term "actuarial" became attached to the profession because of his title.
He won 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"...
in 1789 for his two papers on the values of Reversions and Survivorships, printed in the last two volumes of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society is a scientific journal published by the Royal Society of London. It was established in 1665, making it the first journal in the world exclusively devoted to science, and it has remained in continuous publication ever since, making it the world's...
, in the field of actuarial science
Actuarial science
Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in the insurance and finance industries. Actuaries are professionals who are qualified in this field through education and experience...
:
- On the Probabilities of Survivorships Between Two Persons of Any Given Ages, and the Method of Determining the Values of Reversions Depending on those Survivorships, 1788–1794
- On the Method of Determining, from the Real Probabilities of Life, the Value of a Contingent Reversion in Which Three Lives are Involved in the Survivorship. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Vol. 79 (1789) pp. 40–54
He was elected a Fellow of the Society in May of the following year.
Advised by Joseph Priestly, a family friend, he developed an interest in scientific experimentation and is credited with being the first to record the "invisible light" produced when a current is passed through a partly evacuated
Vacuum
In everyday usage, vacuum is a volume of space that is essentially empty of matter, such that its gaseous pressure is much less than atmospheric pressure. The word comes from the Latin term for "empty". A perfect vacuum would be one with no particles in it at all, which is impossible to achieve in...
glass tube: "the first x-ray tube".
Later in life, through his uncle, Richard Price
Richard Price
Richard Price was a British moral philosopher and preacher in the tradition of English Dissenters, and a political pamphleteer, active in radical, republican, and liberal causes such as the American Revolution. He fostered connections between a large number of people, including writers of the...
, he became friends with noted radicals
Radicalism (historical)
The term Radical was used during the late 18th century for proponents of the Radical Movement. It later became a general pejorative term for those favoring or seeking political reforms which include dramatic changes to the social order...
, including Tom Paine and Francis Burdett. He escaped with only a warning when in 1794 the authorities rounded up members of the movement and charged them with treason.
Other publications:
- The Doctrine of Annuities and Assurances on Lives and Survivorships, 1779
- Computation of Premiums for Life Assurance on the Basis of the Northampton Table of Mortality, manuscript
- Valuation (Individually) of the Assurance Contracts in Force in 1786, manuscript
- Yearly Computation of Expected Deaths and Accounts Showing the State of the Equitable Life Assurance Society According to the Plan Suggested by Richard Price, manuscript
- Nine Addresses to the General Court of the Equitable Society Covering the Years 1793 to 1830, 1833