Gresham College Lectures
Gresham College has been providing free public lectures since 1597, making us London's oldest higher education institution. This podcast offers our recorded lectures that are free to access from the Gresham College website, or our YouTube channel.
Gresham College Lectures
Planes and pacifism: Activities and attitudes of British mathematicians during WWI
•
Gresham College
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
The First World War was the first time that war was fought in the air. Aircraft technology was in its infancy and mathematicians not only helped with the development of reconnaissance, fighter and bomber planes but also dealt with problems of anti-aircraft gunnery. But not all mathematicians felt the same way about the war and in Cambridge a surprising number adopted a pacifist stance.
This lecture will describe some activities of British mathematicians during the war, at the Royal Aircraft Factory, the firing ground of HMS Excellent and in Cambridge, and consider the overall effect of the conflict on British mathematics.
This lecture will describe some activities of British mathematicians during the war, at the Royal Aircraft Factory, the firing ground of HMS Excellent and in Cambridge, and consider the overall effect of the conflict on British mathematics.