H. E. Watson
H. E. Watson | |
---|---|
Born | Herbert Edmeston Watson 17 May 1886 Kew, UK |
Died | 24 September 1980 Woking, UK | (aged 94)
Alma mater | University College London University of Berlin University of Geneva Trinity College, Cambridge |
Known for | Chemistry |
Spouse | Kathleen Rowson |
Children | 2 |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Chemistry Chemical Engineering |
Institutions | University College London Indian Institute of Science |
Herbert Edmeston Watson (FRIC FIChemE) (17 May 1886 - 24 September 1980) was Ramsay Memorial Professor of Chemical Engineering at University College London and the inventor of the low voltage neon glow lamp.[1][2]
Education
Watson attended
No mere notes however convey the fascination of the course or the method of its delivery; still less can they describe the innumerable experiments, ranging from the isolation of argon from the air, to the vocal effects of hydrogen when inhaled, which accompanied it. Practically every laboratory preparation described was carried out on the lecture bench, and a sample of every substance mentioned was to be seen. Any unusual properties were demonstrated.
While under Ramsay, Watson worked with him on "The refraction and dispersion of neon",[5] while Ramsay presented Watson's work "The spectrum of the lighter constituents of the air" to the Royal Society in 1908,[6] and "The spectrum of radium emanation" to the Royal Society in 1909.[7] Also while at UCL, Watson modified Chick's Law, the relationship between the kill efficiency of organisms and contact time with a disinfectant, that had been created by Harriette Chick,[8] by including the coefficient of specific lethality.[9] The 1908 amendment is known as The Chick-Watson Equation.
Watson studied for his
Career
In 1911 he joined the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore as an associate professor,[1][13][14] before progressing to the role of Professor of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry at the Institute in 1916.[1] During 1916, Watson and J. J. Sudborough successfully extracted the first sample of sandalwood oil in India at the institute.[15] He resigned from the role in 1933, after the new director of the Institute, Sir C. V. Raman, started to redirect funds from the chemistry department to physics.[16]
In 1934 he became the third Ramsay professor of chemical engineering at University College London after the death of the previous incumbent W. E. Gibbs, and held the position until his retirement in 1951.[17] At the end of the war, Watson fell out with Professor of Chemistry Ingold over the quality of delivery of chemistry to chemical engineering students, which was resolved by Watson hiring his own chemistry lecturer.[18] Upon his retirement he was made Emeritus Professor at UCL, being replaced by M. B. Donald as the Ramsay professor. In 1961, he wrote the paper "The development of the neon glow lamp (1911–61)" which appeared in Nature.[19]
Personal life and death
Watson was born to Arthur Edmeston Watson and Helen Louisa Rumpff, in Kew on the 17 May 1886. He married Kathleen Margaret Rowson in 1917, who died in 1951, and had one son Bruce Edmeston Watson in 1918. Watson died on the 24 September 1980 in Woking.[1]
References
- ^ ISBN 9780713621761.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - ^ a b "Low voltage neon lamp, made at the Cavendish Laboratory in 1911". The Science Museum. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ^ a b "Herbert Edmeston Watson". Chemistry Tree. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- S2CID 12592582.
- .
- JSTOR 92984.
- .
- PMID 20474353.
- PMID 20474372.
- ^ JSTOR 93239.
- ^ Watson, H. E. (1914). "Some experiments on the electrical discharge in helium and neon". Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. 17: 90–107.
- ^ "Doctor of Science: Honours and Higher Degrees: Internal Students". British History Online. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ^ "Early academics at IISc". Connect IISc. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ^ Prashanth, G. N. (25 July 2010). "100 and still counting". Times of India. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ^ "Science India Mar 2022". Science India Magazine. March 2022. p. 11.
- ^ Chattopadhyay, A. (23 July 2020). "How Sir C V Raman used and abused press for his advantage". Indus Scrolls. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
- ^ "History". UCL Department of Chemical Engineering. 19 July 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
- ISBN 978-94-009-2307-2.
- S2CID 28398580.