Bertram Vivian Bowden, Baron Bowden (; 18 January 1910 – 28 July 1989) was an

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and

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ist, particularly associated with the development of

UMIST The University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) was a university based in the centre of the city of Manchester in England. It specialised in technical and scientific subjects and was a major centre for research. On 1 Oct ...

as a successful

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Life

Born, Chesterfield,

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, he attended

Hasland Junior School Hasland is a suburb in the Borough of Chesterfield in the town of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England. Hasland is located south of Spital, east of Birdholme and north of Grassmoor. Hasland is a ward of the Borough of Chesterfield. The ward popu ...

as a child and graduated in natural sciences from Emmanuel College, Cambridge (1931), taking his

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nuclear physics Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...

. From 1934-1935 he was sponsored by ICI to undertake research at the

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.Entwistle (2004) After a period in teaching, in 1940 he was conscripted to the

Telecommunications Research Establishment The Telecommunications Research Establishment (TRE) was the main United Kingdom research and development organization for radio navigation, radar, infra-red detection for heat seeking missiles, and related work for the Royal Air Force (RAF) ...

to work on

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, including an improved system to distinguish between friend and foe. From 1943, he continued his work at the

U.S. Naval Research Laboratory The United States Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) is the corporate research laboratory for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. It was founded in 1923 and conducts basic scientific research, applied research, technological ...

, establishing himself as an able and effective administrator. From the end of

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to 1953 he held a series of jobs, including selling early computers manufactured by

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. His prescient forecasts of the impact that the technology would have on daily life were published in his 1953 book ''Faster than Thought''. In 1953, Bowden became principal of the Manchester College of Science and Technology, a

vocational education Vocational education is education that prepares people to work as a technician or to take up employment in a skilled craft or trade as a tradesperson or artisan. Vocational Education can also be seen as that type of education given to an i ...

college in

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. The post-war expansion in university education in Britain, coupled with Bowden's energy, creativity and lobbying soon entailed the college's transformation into UMIST (University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology). On 18 January 1964, he was created a life peer as Baron Bowden, ''of Chesterfield in the County of Derby'' and later in this year, Harold Wilson appointed him Minister for Education and Science. However,

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and the labyrinths of the civil service were ill-matched to Bowden's direct approach and, in 1965 he returned to UMIST. He retired in 1976. Bowden was married four times and had three children. He died in Bowdon, Cheshire.

Islamic finance

Bowden was interested in Islamic finance and economics, enough to suggest an Institute for the History of Islamic Science and Commerce, though this never materialised. His interest in the subject continued and he once mentioned the subject at length in the

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.FTSC (2006] His interest in the subject was spurred by his colleague

Salim Al-Hassani Salim T. S. Al-Hassani is Emeritus Professor of Mechanical Engineering and currently an Honorary Professorial Fellow at the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Manchester. He is President of the Foundation of Science, Technology and Civili ...

Honours

* Distinguished Fellow of the British Computer Society (1976) *Honorary Fellow of the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...

(1975); *Pioneer Award of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (1973).

References

Bibliography

*
Papers of Lord Bowden
at the

University of Manchester Library The University of Manchester Library is the library system and information service of the University of Manchester. The main library is on the Oxford Road campus of the university, with its entrance on Burlington Street. There are also ten other ...

. *Entwistle, K.M. (2004)
(Bertram) Vivian, Baron Bowden (1910-1989)
, rev., ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', Oxford University Press, accessed 17 June 2005 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowden, B.V. 1910 births 1989 deaths Academics of the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge English educational theorists English physicists Fellows of the British Computer Society Life peers Ministers in the Wilson governments, 1964–1970 People educated at Chesterfield Grammar School People from Chesterfield, Derbyshire Life peers created by Elizabeth II