Sheila May Edmonds (1 April 1916 – 2 September 2002) was a British

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

, a

Lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and Vice-Principal of

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicent ...

from 1960 to 1981.

Early life and education

Born in

Kingston, Kent Kingston is a village and civil parish between Canterbury and Dover in Kent, South East England. The parish contains the hamlet of Marley. History The Kingston Brooch, an important piece of Anglo-Saxon jewellery dating from the 7th Century, was ...

, Edmonds studied at

Wimbledon High School Wimbledon High School is an independent girls' day school in Wimbledon, South West London. It is a Girls' Day School Trust school and is a member of the Girls' Schools Association. History Wimbledon High School was founded by the Girls' Publ ...

and entered Newnham College, Cambridge in 1935 to study for the

Mathematical Tripos The Mathematical Tripos is the mathematics course that is taught in the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. It is the oldest Tripos examined at the University. Origin In its classical nineteenth-century form, the tripos was a ...

. At this time women could attend lectures and sit examinations but were not permitted to graduate with a degree. She had an excellent undergraduate career and finished Part II as a " Wrangler", Cambridge nomenclature for a student achieving a First Class award. Edmonds followed this with a Distinction in

Part III ''Part III'' is the third studio album by American R&B group 112. It was released by Bad Boy Records on March 20, 2001 in the United States. Unlike the previous releases, the album is described as having edgier, techno-flavored jams, resulting ...

, and then studied for a PhD with

G. H. Hardy Godfrey Harold Hardy (7 February 1877 – 1 December 1947) was an English mathematician, known for his achievements in number theory and mathematical analysis. In biology, he is known for the Hardy–Weinberg principle, a basic principle of pop ...

. During her doctoral research she spent a year at

Westfield College Westfield College was a small college situated in Hampstead, London, from 1882 to 1989. It was the first college to aim to educate women for University of London degrees from its opening. The college originally admitted only women as students and ...

, London, and a year at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

. She was awarded PhD for her dissertation "Some Multiplication Problems" in 1944.

Career

Edmonds's first papers were published while she was studying for her PhD, with two in 1942 on

infinite series In mathematics, a series is, roughly speaking, a description of the operation of adding infinitely many quantities, one after the other, to a given starting quantity. The study of series is a major part of calculus and its generalization, math ...

and on

Fourier transform A Fourier transform (FT) is a mathematical transform that decomposes functions into frequency components, which are represented by the output of the transform as a function of frequency. Most commonly functions of time or space are transformed, ...

s. These led to a series of papers over the following years, exploring these topics and building on her PhD research into

Parseval's theorem In mathematics, Parseval's theorem usually refers to the result that the Fourier transform is unitary; loosely, that the sum (or integral) of the square of a function is equal to the sum (or integral) of the square of its transform. It originates ...

. She was a dedicated teacher, supervising students in all branches of

pure Pure may refer to: Computing * A pure function * A pure virtual function * PureSystems, a family of computer systems introduced by IBM in 2012 * Pure Software, a company founded in 1991 by Reed Hastings to support the Purify tool * Pure-FTPd, F ...

and

applied mathematics Applied mathematics is the application of mathematical methods by different fields such as physics, engineering, medicine, biology, finance, business, computer science, and industry. Thus, applied mathematics is a combination of mathematical s ...

, as well as lecturing courses in the Mathematical Tripos. Edmonds served on the University Faculty Board of Mathematics for many years, and was its chair in 1975 and 1976. In 1960, Edmonds was appointed Vice-Principal of Newnham, one of the senior offices of the college, a post which she held until her retirement in 1981. She also served on the

University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES) is a non-teaching department of the University of Cambridge, which operates under the brand name Cambridge Assessment, and is part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment. It prov ...

and the boards of governors of several schools including Rodean.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edmonds, Sheila May 1916 births 2002 deaths Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge British women mathematicians 20th-century British mathematicians People educated at Wimbledon High School 20th-century women mathematicians People from Kingston, Kent