Stepan Prokofyevich Timoshenko (russian: Степан Прокофьевич Тимошенко, p=sʲtʲɪˈpan prɐˈkofʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tʲɪmɐˈʂɛnkə; uk, Степан Прокопович Тимошенко, Stepan Prokopovych Tymoshenko; – May 29, 1972), later known as Stephen Timoshenko, was a Russian Imperial and later, an AmericanStephen Timoshenko on NNDB

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

and academician of Ukrainian descent. He is considered to be the father of modern

engineering mechanics Applied mechanics is the branch of science concerned with the motion of any substance that can be experienced or perceived by humans without the help of instruments. In short, when mechanics concepts surpass being theoretical and are applied and e ...

. An inventor and one of the pioneering mechanical engineers at the St. Petersburg Polytechnic University. A founding member of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Timoshenko wrote seminal works in the areas of

, elasticity and

strength of materials The field of strength of materials, also called mechanics of materials, typically refers to various methods of calculating the stresses and strains in structural members, such as beams, columns, and shafts. The methods employed to predict the re ...

, many of which are still widely used today. Having started his scientific career in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

, Timoshenko emigrated to the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama ...

during the

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

and then to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

Biography

Timoshenko was born in the village of Shpotovka, Uyezd of Konotop in the

Chernigov Governorate The Chernigov Governorate (russian: Черниговская губерния; translit.: ''Chernigovskaya guberniya''; ), also known as the Government of Chernigov, was a guberniya in the historical Left-bank Ukraine region of the Russian ...

which at that time was a territory of the

(today in Konotop Raion, Sumy Oblast of

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

). He studied at a Realschule (russian: реальное училище) in Romny,

Poltava Governorate The Poltava Governorate (russian: Полтавская губерния, Poltavskaya guberniya; ua, Полтавська Губернія, translit=Poltavska huberniia) or Poltavshchyna was a gubernia (also called a province or government) in ...

(now in Sumy Oblast) from 1889 to 1896. In Romny his schoolmate and friend was future famous semiconductor physicist Abram Ioffe. Timoshenko continued his education towards a university degree at the St Petersburg Institute of engineers Ways of Communication. After graduating in 1901, he stayed on teaching in this same institution from 1901 to 1903 and then worked at the Saint Petersburg Polytechnical Institute under

Viktor Kirpichov Viktor Lvovich Kirpichov (russian: Ви́ктор Льво́вич Кирпичё́в; , Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire – , Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire) was a prominent Russian Imperial engineer, physicist, and educational organizer, know ...

1903–1906. In 1905, he was sent for one year to the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded i ...

where he worked under Ludwig Prandtl. In the fall of 1906, he was appointed to the Chair of Strengths of Materials at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute. The return to his native Ukraine turned out to be an important part of his career and also influenced his future personal life. From 1907 to 1911, as a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professor ...

at the Polytechnic Institute he did research in the earlier variant of the

Finite Element Method The finite element method (FEM) is a popular method for numerically solving differential equations arising in engineering and mathematical modeling. Typical problem areas of interest include the traditional fields of structural analysis, heat ...

of elastic calculations, the so-called

Rayleigh Rayleigh may refer to: Science *Rayleigh scattering *Rayleigh–Jeans law *Rayleigh waves *Rayleigh (unit), a unit of photon flux named after the 4th Baron Rayleigh *Rayl, rayl or Rayleigh, two units of specific acoustic impedance and characte ...

method. During those years he also pioneered work on

buckling In structural engineering, buckling is the sudden change in shape ( deformation) of a structural component under load, such as the bowing of a column under compression or the wrinkling of a plate under shear. If a structure is subjected to a ...

, and published the first version of his famous ''Strength of Materials'' textbook. He was elected dean of the Division of Structural Engineering in 1909. In 1911 he signed a protest against Minister for Education Kasso and was fired from the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute. In 1911 he was awarded the D. I. Zhuravski prize of the St.Petersburg Ways of Communication Institute that helped him survive after losing his job. He went to St Petersburg where he worked as a lecturer and then a Professor in the ''Electrotechnical Institute'' and the St Petersburg Institute of the Railways (1911–1917). During that time he developed the theory of elasticity and the theory of beam deflection, and continued to study buckling. In 1918 he returned to Kyiv and assisted Vladimir Vernadsky in establishing the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences – the oldest

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

among the Soviet republics other than Russia. In 1918–1920 Timoshenko headed the newly established Institute of Mechanics of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, which today carries his name. After the

Armed Forces of South Russia The Armed Forces of South Russia (AFSR or SRAF) () were the unified military forces of the White movement in southern Russia between 1919 and 1920. On 8 January 1919, the Armed Forces of South Russia were formed, incorporating the Volunteer Arm ...

of general Denikin had taken Kyiv in 1919, Timoshenko moved from Kyiv to

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East ...

. After travel via Novorossiysk,

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...

and

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth ( Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

to the

, he arrived in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Sl ...

, where he got professorship at the Zagreb Polytechnic Institute. In 1920, during the brief liberation of Kyiv from Bolsheviks, Timoshenko travelled to the city, reunited with his family and returned with his family to

. He is remembered for delivering lectures in Russian while using as many words in

Croatian Croatian may refer to: * Croatia *Croatian language *Croatian people *Croatians (demonym) See also * * * Croatan (disambiguation) * Croatia (disambiguation) * Croatoan (disambiguation) * Hrvatski (disambiguation) * Hrvatsko (disambiguation) * S ...

as he could; the students were able to understand him well.

United States

In 1922, Timoshenko moved to the

where he worked for the

Westinghouse Electric Corporation The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was renamed "Westinghouse Electric Corporation" i ...

from 1923 to 1927, after which he became a faculty professor in the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

where he created the first

bachelor A bachelor is a man who is not and has never been married.Bachelors are, in Pitt & al.'s phrasing, "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating". (). Etymol ...

's and doctoral programs in engineering mechanics. His textbooks have been published in 36 languages. His first textbooks and papers were written in Russian; later in his life, he published mostly in English. In 1928 he was an Invited Speaker of the ICM in Bologna. From 1936 onward he was a professor at Stanford University. Timoshenko's younger brothers, architect Serhii (

Sergius Timoshenko Sergius was the name of a Roman Patrician Gens, Sergia (or Sergii), originally from Alba Longa ( Latium in central Italy). It is also found as Sergios. It may refer to: Name * Sergius (name) or Serge, a masculine given name Roman Catholi ...

, Ukrainian Minister of Transport, participant in the 1921 Second Winter Campaign against the Soviet regime, and member of the Polish Senate), and economist Volodymyr, both immigrated to the United States as well. In 1957,

ASME The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via " continuing ...

established a medal named after Stephen Timoshenko; he became its first recipient. The Timoshenko Medal honors Stephen P. Timoshenko as the world-renowned authority in the field of

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, ...

and it commemorates his contributions as author and teacher. The Timoshenko Medal is given annually for distinguished contributions in applied mechanics. In 1960 he moved to

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "'' Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and to ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

to be with his daughter. In addition to his

textbook A textbook is a book containing a comprehensive compilation of content in a branch of study with the intention of explaining it. Textbooks are produced to meet the needs of educators, usually at educational institutions. Schoolbooks are textboo ...

s, in 1963 Timoshenko wrote a book ''Engineering Education in Russia'' and an

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English p ...

, ''As I Remember'' in the Russian language. It was translated into English in 1968 by sponsorship of the Stanford University. Jacob Pieter Den Hartog, who was Timoshenko's co-worker in the early 1920s at Westinghouse, wrote a review in the magazine ''Science'' stating that "between 1922 and 1962 he .P. Timoshenkowrote a dozen books on all aspects of engineering mechanics, which are in their third or fourth U.S. edition and which have been translated into half a dozen foreign languages each, so that his name as an author and scholar is known to nearly every mechanical and civil engineer in the entire world.. Then, Den Hartog stressed: "There is no question that Timoshenko did much for America. It is an equally obvious truth that America did much for Timoshenko, as it did for millions of other immigrants for all over the world. However, our autobiographer has never admitted as much to his associates and pupils who, like myself often have been pained by his casual statements in conversation. That pain is not diminished by reading these statements on the printed page and one would have wished for a little less acid and a little more human kindness." The celebrated theory that takes into account

shear deformation image:boudin_vein.jpg, Boudinaged quartz vein (with strain fringe) showing ''Fault (geology), sinistral shear sense'', Starlight Pit, Fortnum Gold Mine, Western Australia In geology, shear is the response of a rock to Deformation (engineering), ...

and

rotary inertia The moment of inertia, otherwise known as the mass moment of inertia, angular mass, second moment of mass, or most accurately, rotational inertia, of a rigid body is a quantity that determines the torque needed for a desired angular acceler ...

was developed by Timoshenko in collaboration with Paul Ehrenfest. Thus it is referred to as Timoshenko-Ehrenfest beam theory. This fact was testified by Timoshenko. The interrelation between Timoshenko-Ehrenfest beam and Euler-Bernoulli beam theory was investigated in the book by Wang, Reddy and Lee. He died in 1972 and his ashes are buried in

Alta Mesa Memorial Park Alta Mesa Memorial Park is a non-denominational burial ground located in Palo Alto, Santa Clara County, California. It was established in 1904 as a 72-acre cemetery. It includes traditional burial plots, a mausoleum and a columbarium. Notabl ...

Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was es ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. An archive of his manuscripts, letters, and handwritten materials are available online.

List of Timoshenko's doctoral students in the U.S.A.Timoshenko S., "As I Remember", D. Van Nostrand, 1968, ASIN: B000JOIJ7I

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

* Coates, W. M., (1929) * Donnell, L. H., (1930) * Billevicz, V., (1931) * Everett, F. L., (1931) * Frocht, M. M., (1931) * Goodier, J. N., (1931) * Brandeberry, J. B., (1932) * MacCullough, G. H., (1932) * Jamieson, J., (1933) * Taylor, W. H., (1933) * Verse, G. L., (1933) * Vesselowsky, S. T., (1933) * Weibel, E. E., (1933) * Jakkula, A. A., (1934) * Maugh, L. C., (1934) * Schoonover, R. H., (1934) * Way, S., (1934) * Wojtaszak, I. A., (1934) * Allan, G. W. C., (1935) * Horger, O. J., (1935) * Maulbetsch, J. L., (1935) * Miles, A. J., (1935) * Young, D. H., (1935) * Anderson, C. G., (1936) * Fox, E. N., (1936) * Hetenyi, M. I., (1936) * Hogan, M. B., (1936) * Marin, J., (1936) * Zahorski, A. T., (1937)

Stanford University

* Bergman, E. O., (1938) * Kurzweil, A. C., (1940) * Lee, E. H., (1940) * Huang, Y. S., (1941) * Wang, T. K., (1941) * Weber, H. S., (1941) * Hoff, N. J., (1942) * Popov, E. P., (1946) * Chilton, E. G., (1947)

Publications

*''Applied Elasticity'', with J. M. Lessells, D. Van Nostrand Company, 1925 *''Vibration Problems in Engineering'', D. Van Nostrand Company, 1st Ed. 1928, 2nd Ed. 1937, 3rd Ed. 1955 (with D. H. Young) *''Strength of Materials'', Part I, Elementary Theory and Problems, D. Van Nostrand Company, 1st Ed. 1930, 2nd Ed. 1940, 3rd Ed. 1955 *''Strength of Materials'', Part II, Advanced Theory and Problems, D. Van Nostrand Company, 1st Ed. 1930, 2nd Ed. 1941, 3rd Ed. 1956 *''Theory of Elasticity '', McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1st Ed. 1934, 2nd Ed. 1951 (with J. N. Goodier) *''Elements of Strength of Materials'', D. Van Nostrand Co., 1st Ed. 1935, 2nd Ed. 1940, 3rd Ed. 1949 (with G.H. MacCullough), 4th Ed. 1962 (with D.H. Young) *''Theory of Elastic Stability'', McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1st Ed. 1936, 2nd Ed. 1961 (with J. M. Gere) *''Engineering Mechanics'', with D.H. Young, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1st Ed. 1937, 2nd Ed. 1940, 3rd. Ed. 1951, 4th Ed. 1956 *''Theory of Plates and Shells '', McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1st Ed. 1940, 2nd Ed. 1959 (with S. Woinowsky-Krieger) *''Theory of Structures'', with D. H. Young, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1st Ed. 1945, 2nd Ed. 1965 *''Advanced Dynamics'', with D. H. Young, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1948 *''History of The Strength of Materials'', McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1953 *''Engineering Education in Russia'', McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1959 *''As I Remember'', D. Van Nostrand, 1968, ASIN: B000JOIJ7I *''Mechanics of Materials'', with J. M. Gere, 1st edition, D. Van Nostrand Company, 1972 *''Erinnerungen'', Translation from the Russian original edition (Translator: Albert Duda), Berlin: Wiley, 2006, (in German)

Biography

United States

List of Timoshenko's doctoral students in the U.S.A.Timoshenko S., "As I Remember", D. Van Nostrand, 1968, ASIN: B000JOIJ7I

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Stanford University

Publications

See also

References

Further reading