Derek Taunt
Encyclopedia
Derek Roy Taunt was a British
mathematician
who worked as a codebreaker
during World War II
at Bletchley Park
.
Taunt attended Enfield Grammar
, then the City of London School
. He studied mathematics at Jesus College
, Cambridge
between 1936 and 1939. He was accepted as a research student by G. H. Hardy
, but this was postponed by the outbreak of World War II. Taunt registered with the Joint Recruiting Board, and was initially allocated to work on ballistics
at Kemnal Manor in Chislehurst
, preparing range tables for new weapons. Finding that the task required only trivial mathematics ("more like advanced arithmetic than real mathematics"), he sought more appropriate work.
In August 1941 he was moved to Bletchley Park and assigned to Hut 6
, the section in charge of decrypting German Army and Air Force Enigma signals. While there, he was best man at the marriage of co-workers Bob Roseveare
and Ione Jay.
After his wartime work, he returned to Cambridge, and worked on group theory
. He was a research student (1945), won a Smith's Prize
in 1949, and was a Lecturer from 1949 with the honorific title of 'Cayley Lecturer' from 1965 until retirement in 1982. As a Fellow of Jesus College
he was at various times a director of studies, tutor, bursar, and from 1979 to 1982 was President. In 1982 he became Emeritus Fellow, "with most of the privileges and none of the duties of a Fellow."
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
who worked as a codebreaker
Codebreaker
Codebreaker may refer to:*A person who performs cryptanalysis*The Codebreakers, a 1967 book on history of cryptography by David Kahn*Codebreaker , a 1981 puzzle-based computer game, originally released for the Atari 2600...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
at Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, in Buckinghamshire, England, which currently houses the National Museum of Computing...
.
Taunt attended Enfield Grammar
Enfield Grammar School
Enfield Grammar School is a boys' comprehensive school in Enfield Town in the London Borough of Enfield in north London.-History:Enfield Grammar School was founded on the 25th. May 1558...
, then the City of London School
City of London School
The City of London School is a boys' independent day school on the banks of the River Thames in the City of London, England. It is the brother school of the City of London School for Girls and the co-educational City of London Freemen's School...
. He studied mathematics at Jesus College
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
, Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
between 1936 and 1939. He was accepted as a research student by G. H. Hardy
G. H. Hardy
Godfrey Harold “G. H.” Hardy FRS was a prominent English mathematician, known for his achievements in number theory and mathematical analysis....
, but this was postponed by the outbreak of World War II. Taunt registered with the Joint Recruiting Board, and was initially allocated to work on ballistics
Ballistics
Ballistics is the science of mechanics that deals with the flight, behavior, and effects of projectiles, especially bullets, gravity bombs, rockets, or the like; the science or art of designing and accelerating projectiles so as to achieve a desired performance.A ballistic body is a body which is...
at Kemnal Manor in Chislehurst
Chislehurst
Chislehurst is a suburban district in south-east London, England, and an electoral ward of the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
, preparing range tables for new weapons. Finding that the task required only trivial mathematics ("more like advanced arithmetic than real mathematics"), he sought more appropriate work.
In August 1941 he was moved to Bletchley Park and assigned to Hut 6
Hut 6
Hut 6 was a wartime section of Bletchley Park tasked with the solution of German Army and Air Force Enigma machine ciphers. Hut 8, by contrast, attacked Naval Enigma...
, the section in charge of decrypting German Army and Air Force Enigma signals. While there, he was best man at the marriage of co-workers Bob Roseveare
Bob Roseveare
Robert Arthur Roseveare was a codebreaker at Bletchley Park during World War II and later a schoolteacher.He was born at Repton, Derbyshire where his father, Sir Martin Roseveare, taught at Repton School...
and Ione Jay.
After his wartime work, he returned to Cambridge, and worked on group theory
Group theory
In mathematics and abstract algebra, group theory studies the algebraic structures known as groups.The concept of a group is central to abstract algebra: other well-known algebraic structures, such as rings, fields, and vector spaces can all be seen as groups endowed with additional operations and...
. He was a research student (1945), won a Smith's Prize
Smith's Prize
The Smith's Prize was the name of each of two prizes awarded annually to two research students in theoretical Physics, mathematics and applied mathematics at the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England.- History :...
in 1949, and was a Lecturer from 1949 with the honorific title of 'Cayley Lecturer' from 1965 until retirement in 1982. As a Fellow of Jesus College
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
he was at various times a director of studies, tutor, bursar, and from 1979 to 1982 was President. In 1982 he became Emeritus Fellow, "with most of the privileges and none of the duties of a Fellow."
External links
- Derek Taunt, entry in the Mathematics Genealogy ProjectMathematics Genealogy ProjectThe Mathematics Genealogy Project is a web-based database for the academic genealogy of mathematicians. As of September, 2010, it contained information on approximately 145,000 mathematical scientists who contribute to "research-level mathematics"...
- Obituary in The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, August 13, 2004.