| Activity | Education:
Realgymnasium, Vienna; encouraged by Sir Arthur Eddington to apply in 1937 to Trinity College, Cambridge
Career:
Interned and sent to Canada (1940) where on his first night he met his future lifelong friend Thomas Gold, another Viennese Jew studying at Trinity; returned (1942) to work in the Admiralty with Fred Hoyle, the astrophysicist, on the refinement of radar technique; Fellow, Trinity College, Cambridge (1943-1949, 1952-1954); Assistant Lecturer in Mathemetics, Cambridge University (1945-1948); University Lecturer (1948-1954), Professor of Mathematics (1954-1971), revised his opinion on steady state theory following discovery of microwave background radiation by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson which suggested Big Bang theory more likely explanation; Fellow (1968), Titular Professor (1971-1985) (Emeritus), King's College London; Director-General, European Space Research Organisation (1967-1971); Chief Scientific Adviser, Ministry of Defence (1971-1977); Chief Scientist, Department of Energy (1977-1980); Chariman and Chief Executive, NERC (1980-1984); Master, Churchill College, Cambridge (1983-1990), Fellow (1990-2005); President, Hydrographic Society (1985-1987); President, Society for Research into Higher Education (1981-1997); President; British Association of Science Writers (1981-1985); President of the British Humanist Association (1982-1990); President Rationalist Press Association (from 1982); winner of Einstein Gold Medal (1983); Decoration of Honour for Science and Art, Austria (1997); Gold Medal, Royal Astronomical Society (2001); honorary doctorates from the universities of Sussex, Bath, Surrey, York, Southampton, Salford, Birmingham, St Andrews, Portsmouth and Vienna.
Honours:
KCB 1973 |
| Sources | Sources:
Obituary in 'The Independent' (12 September 2005); 'The Telegraph' (13 September 2005); 'The Times' (13 September 2005), 'The Guardian' (13 September 2005)
Biographical Memoir by I W Roxburgh in Volume 53 (2007) pp 45-62
References:
N Calver and M Parker ' The logic of scientific Unity? Medawar, the Royal Society and the Rothschild controversy 1971-2.' In Notes and Records, Vol 70, Issue 1, March 2016 pp 83-100 |