Thomas Ranken Lyle
Trinity College, Dublin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Dame Mary Herring (daughter) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Occupation(s) | Mathematical physicist | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sir Thomas Ranken Lyle
Lyle was born and educated in Ireland before emigrating to Australia to take up a professorship at the University of Melbourne. There he was a pioneer in the use of X-rays as a medical tool. The Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal is awarded in his name to honour Australian achievements in Physics and Mathematics.
In his earlier years in Ireland he was a rugby union forward of some note, who played club rugby for Dublin University and international rugby for Ireland.[4]
Career
Lyle was born in
In 1892 Lyle married Frances Isobel Clare Millear, the daughter of a prominent Western District grazier, and the two set up home in a professorial house provided by the university.[5] They had four children, Mary, Nancy, Thomas, and Clare. Their first child, Mary Ranken Lyle (born in 1894), became a notable physician, and married Edmund Herring in 1922.[5]
In February 1896, news reached the scientific community in Australia of
Lyle is credited with taking and publishing one of the first X-ray photos in Australia, independently of contemporary fellow pioneers Father Joseph Patrick Slattery and Walter Drowley Filmer, namely a picture of the foot of a Professor Masson,[5] which was reproduced in newspapers the next day.[6][2][7][8] In June 1896 he was invited to take a photo of a patient who had a needle embedded in their hand. The resulting 'shadow photograph', as the images were then known, allowed doctors to remove the needle with a single incision.[2]
In 1901 Lyle and his family moved into a 20-room blue-stone mansion in Irvine Road,
Although Lyle made early advances in X-rays, his field of expertise was in electrical power technology, especially in the areas of magnetic fields and alternating currents. He published many papers, most of which were also published in London. His scientific achievements were acknowledged in 1905 with the award of Sc.D. from Trinity College, Dublin, and again in 1912 with
Retirement
In 1914, with Ranken family inheritances, his wife's money, and wise financial investments, he was able to announce his retirement from the university. By this time, sporting injuries from his time playing rugby in Ireland had left him requiring crutches.
Lyle was a member of varying government bodies and inquiries, and held a directorship of the Metropolitan Gas Company. During the First World War he was a science advisor for the Naval Board,
He was very active with a wide range of positions in a wide range of public and private organisation until 1940, when a cerebral haemorrhage left him semi-invalid. His health deteriorated, and he died at South Yarra on 31 March 1944, survived by his wife, son and three daughters.[2]
Legacy
Since 1931, the Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal of the Australian Academy of Science has been awarded at most every two years to an Australian mathematician or physicist in honour of their outstanding research achievements.[11]
On 7 September 1995, Lyle was one of seven scientists to be honoured with his image appearing on an Australian postage stamp. Lyle appeared on a 45-cent stamp, along with fellow pioneers of X-ray research Father Joseph Patrick Slattery and Walter Drowley Filmer.[12]
Honours and awards
- Fellow of the Royal Society
- Knight Bachelor
- Sc.D., Trinity College, Dublin
Rugby career
While a student at Dublin University, Lyle played rugby union for the university team. He was impressive enough at university level to bring himself to the notice of the Irish selectors, and was capped for his first international match in the 1885 Home Nations Championship. Lyle played in both Irish games of the 1885 tournament, away loses to England and Scotland. The Scotland game was originally played in Ireland, but weather conditions forced the match to be abandoned after 20 minutes.[13] Lyle played in both the original game and the replay, which sometimes incorrectly causes Lyle to be credited with six international caps. Despite a poor record the previous season, Lyle was reselected for the 1886 tournament, playing in a single game, a one-try loss to England.[citation needed]
His final group of internationals were for the 1887 Home Nations Championship. Lyle was selected for the encounters with England and Scotland, which included his only winning international game when Ireland defeated England by two goals to nil. Lyle had one final role during the 1887 campaign when he was selected to referee the encounter between England and Scotland. His rugby career ended not much later when he suffered a knee injury which affected his health for the rest of his life.[2]
Notes
- ^ S2CID 162395221.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Biography of Sir Thomas Ranken Lyle". Australian Academy of Science. 8 January 2010. Archived from the original on 21 December 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ^ Melbourne University Press, 1986, pp 172–174.
- ^ Thomas Lyle player profile Scrum.com
- ^ a b c d e Diane Nicholas (March 2008). "Local History News, The Lyles of Lisbuoy" (PDF). Malvern Historical Society Inc. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ^ Lyle, Sir Thomas Ranken (1860–1944) Australian Dictionary of Biography
- ^ The History of Neuroradiology: An Australian Perspective Sage, Michael R.; Department of Radiology, Flinders Medical Centre and Flinders University of South Australia
- ^ A short history of the origins of radiography in Australia Radiography, Volume 15, Supplement 1
- ^ LYLE, Thomas Ranken Physics in Australia
- ^ Sir Thomas Lyle, Presentation of Portrait, The Argus, 8 May 1925
- ^ Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal Archived 28 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine, Australian Academy of Science, retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ^ The Medical Science Stamps of 1995 Bert Bolton, HPS Department, University of Melbourne
- ^ Home Nations – Belfast, 21 February 1885 Scrum.com
External links
- . . Dublin: Alexander Thom and Son Ltd. 1923. p. – via Wikisource.
