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Authorised form of namePorter; George (1920 - 2002); Baron Porter of Luddenham
Dates1920 - 2002
NationalityBritish
Place of birthStainforth, near Doncaster, Yorkshire
Date of birth06/12/1920
Place of deathCanterbury
Date of death31/08/2002
Research fieldChemistry
ActivityEducation:
Thorne Grammar School (1931-1938); Leeds University (1938-1941) Ackroyd Scholar
Career:
Radar Officer, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (1941-1945); postgraduate research, Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge (1945) with R G W Norrish; Demonstrator in Physical Chemistry, University of Cambridge (1949-1952); Assistant Director of Research in Physical Chemistry (1952-1954); Assistant Director, British Rayon Research Association, Manchester (1954); Professor of Physical Chemistry, University of Sheffield (1955-1963); awarded Corday-Morgan Medal by the Royal Society of Chemistry (1955); awarded Tilden Medal by the Royal Society of Chemistry (1958); Firth Professor of Chemistry and Head of Chemistry Department, University of Sheffield (1963-1966); Professor of Chemistry, Royal Institution (1963-1966); television series "Laws of Disorder" (1965 - 1966); Vice-President of Faraday Society (1965 - 1967); Director and Fullerian Professor of Chemistry, Royal Institution, London (1966 - 1985); Honorary Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge (1967); awarded Nobel Prize for Chemistry with Ronald Norrish and Manfred Eigen (1967); Vice-President of Chemical Society (1968-1970); Council of Open University (1969 - 1975); awarded Liversidge Medal by Royal Society of Chemistry (1970); President of Royal Society of Chemistry (1970 - 1972); trustee of British Museum (1972 - 1974); President, National Association for Gifted Children (1975 - 1980); Council of Royal Society of Arts (1976 - 1980); Romanes Lecture at Oxford University (1978); awarded Faraday Medal by Royal Society of Chemistry (1980); awarded Longstaff Medal by Royal Society of Chemistry (1981); President of British Association for the Advancement of Science (1985 - 1986); Chancellor of Leicester University (1986 - 1995); awarded Kalinga Prize by UNESCO (1977); Professor at Imperial College (1987 2002); Emeritus Professor of the Royal Institution (1988 - 2002); Chairman of the Centre for Photomolecular Sciences, Imperial College, London (1990 - 2002); Gresham Professor of Astronomy, Gresham College (1990 - 1994); President, National Energy Foundation (1990 - 2000); Master, Salters' Company (1993 - 1994)
Medals and prizes:
Nobel Prize (Chemistry) 1967
Honours:
Kt 1972; OM 1989; Baron 1990
Memberships:
Millennium FRSC (2000)
Membership categoryFellow
Date of election24/03/1960
Age at election39
RSActivityRoyal Society roles:
Council: 1966-1967, 1985-1990; PRS 1985-1990
Medals and prizes:
Copley Medal 1992; Davy Medal 1971; Rumford Medal 1978; Michael Faraday Award 1991
Lectures:
Bakerian 1977; Humphry Davy and Claude Bernard 1985
RelationshipsSon of John Smith Porter and Alice Ann Porter; married (1949) Stella Jean Brooke; two sons
SourceSources:
Obituaries in The Times (02/09/2002), Daily Telegraph (02/09/2002) and The Independent (04/09/2002)
Obituaries:
Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society 2004 vol 50 pp 257-283, plate, by Graham R Fleming and David Phillips
AssocMaterial:
NCUACS 100/5/01. Papers deposited at the Royal Institution, London (covering the period 1938-1999)
References:
'Address of the President, Sir Michael Atiyah, OM, Given at the Anniversary Meeting on 30 November 1992' in NR 1993 vol 47 pp 109-118
'Address of the President, Sir Michael Atiyah, Given at the Anniversary Meeting on 29 November 1991' in NR 1992 vol 46 pp 155-169
Sir Aaron Klug OM FRS, 'Address at the Service of Thanksgiving for the life of George Porter OM FRS' in NR 2003 vol 57 pp 261-264
J S Rowlinson, 'A national treasure house. <i>'The common purposes of life': science and society at the Royal Institution of Great Britain</i> ed Frank A J L James ' in NR 2004 vol 58 pp 105-106
R Cole, 'The importancve of picking Porter: the Royal Institution, George Porter and the two cultures' in Notes and Records, vol 69, Issue 2, 20 June 2015, pp 191 -216
Virtual International Authority Filehttp://viaf.org/viaf/94485112
CodeNA3240
Archives associated with this Fellow
RefNoTitleDate
IM/003078Metcalf, Donald5 November 1986
HWT/25/10/5Correspondence and papers regarding visit of Royal Society delegation to ChinaApril - June 1974
IM/005190Esso Energy Awards, 19861986
IM/003630Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenham1989
RR/72/221Referee's report by Edmund John Bowen, on a paper 'Flash photolysis and spectroscopy. A new method for the study of free radical reactions' by George Porter1949
IM/004839Sachs, Leo5 November 1986
IM/004840Wellcome Foundation Prize 19865 November 1986
IM/003631Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenham1990
IM/GA/AR/7331Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenhamnd
IM/GA/WRS/8979Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenhamnd
IM/004223Smallpiece Trust12 September 1985
IM/GA/SGRS/8349Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenham1984
P/0156Portrait of Porter, George; Baron Porter of Luddenham1990
WF/646Grant application from The Royal Institution of Great Britain to the Wolfson Foundation1 February 1977
EC/1960/19Porter, George, Baron Porter of Luddenham: certificate of election to the Royal Society
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