Jerald Ericksen
Encyclopedia
Jerald LaVerne Ericksen is an American mathematician
specializing in continuum mechanics
.
Jerald was born 20 December 1924 in Portland, Oregon
. His father Adolf worked at a Portland creamery
and became adept at judging the quality of butter
. Later his father acquired a small creamery in Vancouver, Washington
where the family moved. Jerald’s brother A. Erwin was born there, and Jerald helped out in the creamery.
In the fall of 1942 he entered Oregon State College in Corvallis
. When he reached eighteen years of age he enlisted in the U. S. Navy. He was trained as an officer, first at University of Idaho
, Pocatello, and then was transferred to NROTC at the University of Washington
, Seattle. During his 85.5 weeks of training he met his future wife Marion Pook. On active duty he was part of Landing Craft Infantry
, assigned the task of launching rockets to clear beaches for invasion in the Philippines
. On the termination of hostilities he was shipped back to San Diego. He married Marion on 24 February 1946 and resigned from the service that summer.
Ericksen enrolled in University of Washington and was able to obtain his bachelors degree in a year due to credits accumulated in his Navy training. He was a mathematics
major and had a minor in Naval Science. His first graduate school was Oregon State where he had Howard Eves
as an advisor. Ericksen went on to Indiana University
seeking to find applications, besides teaching, for his mathematical skill. There he came under the influence of David Gilbarg
, Vaclav Hlavaty
, Eberhard Hopf
, and Max Zorn. Other influences included Bill Gustin, Tracy Thomas, and George Whaples. Most significantly, it was in Bloomington
that he began to work with Clifford Truesdell
who was criticizing continuum theories. In his autobiography of 2005, Ericksen says "since then I have been trying to better understand the formulation of and techniques for exploring [continuum] theories." Ericksen obtained his Ph.D. in 1951. Jerald and Marion began their family with daughter Lynn in Bloomington.
Research in continuum mechanics, for the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, was conducted by a group including Ericksen, Truesdell, William Saenz, Richard Toupin, and Ronald Rivlin
. Ericksen began to partake in the Society of Rheology and acted as a consultant to a polymer group in the National Bureau of Standards. He explains that HUAC officials interrogated him about communist sympathizers in the era of McCarthyism
. On the other hand, he experienced joy at the birth of his son Randy.
In 1957 Ericksen received an offer from the Mechanical Engineering department of Johns Hopkins University
. After a time Truesdell also moved to Johns Hopkins. A weekly seminar was organized in continuum mechanics where scholars could practice their oral presentations. Ericksen became interested in anisotropic liquids and began to develop a "properly invariant theory of a fluid with a single preferred direction". This topic attracted the interest of scientists like Bernard Coleman, James Ferguson
, and Frank Matthews Leslie
who were attempting to exploit liquid crystal
s. When Leslie joined him at Johns Hopkins they formed a small group with post-doctoral associates to study liquid crystals.
In 1982 Ericksen moved to University of Minnesota
where he took a joint appointment in the School of Mathematics and the Aerospace and Mechanics Department. Starting with a lecture to a general audience he was able to start a graduate course in liquid crystals. Then with Roger Fosdick a seminar or course in continuum mechanics was developed. Further, Ericksen taught a course in Thermodynamics of Solids, the subject of the textbook
that he has published. He was also instrumental in the year- long program in continuum physics and partial differential equation
s held by at the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications
where Millard Beatty was a visitor.
Ericksen retired at age 65 and moved with Marion to Florence, Oregon
.
During his academic career he served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Rational Mechanics and Analysis, Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis
, Journal of Elasticity
, and the International Journal of Solids and Structures.
In 1979 he was awarded the Timoshenko Medal
.
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....
specializing in continuum mechanics
Continuum mechanics
Continuum mechanics is a branch of mechanics that deals with the analysis of the kinematics and the mechanical behavior of materials modelled as a continuous mass rather than as discrete particles...
.
Jerald was born 20 December 1924 in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. His father Adolf worked at a Portland creamery
Creamery
In a dairy, the creamery is the location of cream processing. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has had some cream returned to the skimmed milk....
and became adept at judging the quality of butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
. Later his father acquired a small creamery in Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...
where the family moved. Jerald’s brother A. Erwin was born there, and Jerald helped out in the creamery.
In the fall of 1942 he entered Oregon State College in Corvallis
Corvallis
-Education:* Corvallis High School * Corvallis High School * Corvallis High School -Others:* Cessna 400 Corvalis light aircraft* Corvallis Gazette-Times* Corvallis Knights, baseball team* Corvallis Municipal Airport...
. When he reached eighteen years of age he enlisted in the U. S. Navy. He was trained as an officer, first at University of Idaho
University of Idaho
The University of Idaho is the State of Idaho's flagship and oldest public university, located in the rural city of Moscow in Latah County in the northern portion of the state...
, Pocatello, and then was transferred to NROTC at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, Seattle. During his 85.5 weeks of training he met his future wife Marion Pook. On active duty he was part of Landing Craft Infantry
Landing Craft Infantry
The Landing craft, Infantry or LCI were several classes of sea-going amphibious assault ships of the Second World War utilized to land large numbers of infantry directly onto beaches. They were developed in response to a British request for a vessel capable of carrying and landing substantially...
, assigned the task of launching rockets to clear beaches for invasion in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. On the termination of hostilities he was shipped back to San Diego. He married Marion on 24 February 1946 and resigned from the service that summer.
Ericksen enrolled in University of Washington and was able to obtain his bachelors degree in a year due to credits accumulated in his Navy training. He was a mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
major and had a minor in Naval Science. His first graduate school was Oregon State where he had Howard Eves
Howard Eves
Howard Whitley Eves was an American mathematician, known for his work in geometry and the history of mathematics....
as an advisor. Ericksen went on to Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
seeking to find applications, besides teaching, for his mathematical skill. There he came under the influence of David Gilbarg
David Gilbarg
David Gilbarg was an American mathematician, and a professor emeritus at Stanford University....
, Vaclav Hlavaty
Václav Hlavatý
Václav Hlavatý was a noted Czech-American mathematician, who wrote on the theory of relativity and corresponded extensively with Albert Einstein on the subject. In particular, Hlavatý solved some very difficult equations relating to Einstein's Unified field theory, which was featured in the news...
, Eberhard Hopf
Eberhard Hopf
Eberhard Frederich Ferdinand Hopf was a mathematician and astronomer, one of the founding fathers of ergodic theory and a pioneer of bifurcation theory who also made significant contributions to the subjects of partial differential equations and integral equations, fluid dynamics, and differential...
, and Max Zorn. Other influences included Bill Gustin, Tracy Thomas, and George Whaples. Most significantly, it was in Bloomington
Bloomington
Bloomington is the name of some places in the United States of America:*Bloomington, California*Bloomington, Idaho*Bloomington, Illinois** the Bloomington meteorite of 1938, which fell in Illinois, United States *Bloomington, Indiana...
that he began to work with Clifford Truesdell
Clifford Truesdell
Clifford Ambrose Truesdell III was an American mathematician, natural philosopher, historian of science, and polemicist.-Life:...
who was criticizing continuum theories. In his autobiography of 2005, Ericksen says "since then I have been trying to better understand the formulation of and techniques for exploring [continuum] theories." Ericksen obtained his Ph.D. in 1951. Jerald and Marion began their family with daughter Lynn in Bloomington.
Research in continuum mechanics, for the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, was conducted by a group including Ericksen, Truesdell, William Saenz, Richard Toupin, and Ronald Rivlin
Ronald Rivlin
Ronald Samuel Rivlin was a British-American physicist, mathematician, rheologist and a noted expert on rubber.-Life:Rivlin was born in London in 1915. He studied physics and mathematics at St John's College, Cambridge, being awarded a BA in 1937 and a ScD in 1952...
. Ericksen began to partake in the Society of Rheology and acted as a consultant to a polymer group in the National Bureau of Standards. He explains that HUAC officials interrogated him about communist sympathizers in the era of McCarthyism
McCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
. On the other hand, he experienced joy at the birth of his son Randy.
In 1957 Ericksen received an offer from the Mechanical Engineering department of Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. After a time Truesdell also moved to Johns Hopkins. A weekly seminar was organized in continuum mechanics where scholars could practice their oral presentations. Ericksen became interested in anisotropic liquids and began to develop a "properly invariant theory of a fluid with a single preferred direction". This topic attracted the interest of scientists like Bernard Coleman, James Ferguson
James Ferguson
James Ferguson may refer to:*James Ferguson , Scottish*James Ferguson , Scottish*James Ferguson , Scottish astronomer and instrument maker...
, and Frank Matthews Leslie
Frank Matthews Leslie
Frank Matthews Leslie FRS was a mathematical physicist specializing in continuum mechanics. He is remembered for the Ericksen–Leslie theory he developed with Jerald Ericksen to describe the viscosity of mesophases associated with liquid crystals. The parameters of this theory are viscosities called...
who were attempting to exploit liquid crystal
Liquid crystal
Liquid crystals are a state of matter that have properties between those of a conventional liquid and those of a solid crystal. For instance, an LC may flow like a liquid, but its molecules may be oriented in a crystal-like way. There are many different types of LC phases, which can be...
s. When Leslie joined him at Johns Hopkins they formed a small group with post-doctoral associates to study liquid crystals.
In 1982 Ericksen moved to University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
where he took a joint appointment in the School of Mathematics and the Aerospace and Mechanics Department. Starting with a lecture to a general audience he was able to start a graduate course in liquid crystals. Then with Roger Fosdick a seminar or course in continuum mechanics was developed. Further, Ericksen taught a course in Thermodynamics of Solids, the subject of the textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
that he has published. He was also instrumental in the year- long program in continuum physics and partial differential equation
Partial differential equation
In mathematics, partial differential equations are a type of differential equation, i.e., a relation involving an unknown function of several independent variables and their partial derivatives with respect to those variables...
s held by at the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications
Institute for Mathematics and its Applications
The Institute for Mathematics and its Applications located at the University of Minnesota is an organization established in 1982 by the National Science Foundation of the United States...
where Millard Beatty was a visitor.
Ericksen retired at age 65 and moved with Marion to Florence, Oregon
Florence, Oregon
Florence is a city in Lane County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 8,466.-History:The Florence area was originally inhabited by the Siuslaw tribe of Native Americans. Some state that the city was named for state senator A. B...
.
During his academic career he served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Rational Mechanics and Analysis, Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis
Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis
The Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis is a scientific journal that is devoted to research in mechanics as a deductive, mathematical science. The current editors in chief of the journal are John M. Ball and Richard D. James...
, Journal of Elasticity
Journal of Elasticity
Journal of Elasticity is a peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing original research and review articles on all aspects of elasticity. It is published seven times a year by Springer Science+Business Media.The editor-in-chief of Journal of Elasticity is Roger Fosdick...
, and the International Journal of Solids and Structures.
In 1979 he was awarded the Timoshenko Medal
Timoshenko Medal
The Timoshenko Medal is an award given annually by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers to an individual"in recognition of distinguished contributions to the field of applied mechanics."...
.