Sir Frederick William George White (26 May 1905 – 17 August 1994) was a New Zealand-born Australian physicist and ornithologist who was Chairman of

CSIRO The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentar ...

from 1959 to 1970. originally publisher in ANU Reporter, 12 October 1994, p 11. originally published in ''Historical Records of Australian Science'', vol. 11, no. 2, December 1996, pp. 239-258White, Frederick William George (1905 - 1994)
Encyclopaedia of Australian ScienceWhite, Frederick (1905-1994)
trove.nla.gov.au

Education and early life

White was born in 1905 in Johnsonville. He received his education at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...

and

Victoria University College Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

. Due to his academic performance, he won a scholarship from the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

, and this award enabled him to attend

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

, where he studied under Ernest Rutherford.

Career and research

He taught at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

from 1932, and was lecturer at Canterbury College in Christchurch, New Zealand, from 1937. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, White worked on secret projects developing radar in New Zealand and Australia.

Awards and honours

In the

1954 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1954 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1954 to celebrat ...

, he was appointed a Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE). In the

1962 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1962 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made "on the occ ...

, this was elevated to the class of Knight Commander of the same order (KBE).

Personal life

White died in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

on 17 August 1994. His wife Elizabeth had died two years prior.

References

External links

Australian Dictionary of Biography

CSIROpedia
Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science Australian physicists 1905 births 1994 deaths Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Wellington College, Wellington Victoria University of Wellington alumni Academics of King's College London Academic staff of the University of Canterbury CSIRO people New Zealand Fellows of the Royal Society Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge {{physicist-stub