mathematics

Gordon Foster

Gordon Foster is a mathematics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Gordon Foster rather than just read about it. In short: Frederic Gordon Foster (24 February 1921 – 20 December 2010) was a British computational engineer, statistician, professor, and college dean who is widely known for devising, in 1965, a nine-digit code upon which the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is based. Life Foster was born in Belfast, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, between the 1920 enactment and 1921 implementation of the partition of I…

Key takeaways

Gordon Foster belongs to mathematics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Gordon Foster to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Gordon Foster from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Frederic Gordon Foster (24 February 1921 – 20 December 2010) was a British computational engineer, statistician, professor, and college dean who is widely known for devising, in 1965, a nine-digit code upon which the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is based.

Life Foster was born in Belfast, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, between the 1920 enactment and 1921 implementation of the partition of Ireland. He studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and began advanced study in mathematics at Queen's University Belfast. During World War II, he was recruited from Queen's to work as a code-breaker at Bletchley Park. After the war, he resumed studies at Magdalen College, Oxford. A lecture on feedback control by Norbert Wiener, regarded as the originator of cybernetics, proved to be a great influence on Foster's research. Upon completing his PhD at Magdalen, he accepted an offer to lecture on his research at the University of Manchester, where he met Alan Turing, a Bletchley Park veteran who became known as the father of computer science. Turing introduced him to the Manchester Mark I computer and enlisted his help working on it. In 1956 Foster joined the faculty of the London School of Economics (LSE), first as an assistant lecturer in statistics, then as a lecturer and reader. In 1964 he was appointed to the chair of computational methods. While at LSE, he helped develop operations research as an academic discipline. In 1965, while at the LSE, Foster was commissioned by WH Smith, the book publisher and bookseller, to develop a computerised filing system as part of its drive to modernise its growing company. Foster developed a 9 digit code which he named the Standard Book Numbering System (SBN). This code was very successful and was rapidly adopted by all UK publishers and booksellers. In 1970 the International Standard Organisation (ISO) expanded the SBN to 10 digits by adding an initial zero and the code was renamed to become the International Book Numbering System, or ISBN. It is now used worldwide by all publishers and booksellers. In 1967 Foster was asked by Trinity College Dublin to start a Department of Statistics, and became its professor of statistics. He promoted statistical analysis and computer applications in several constituent schools and academic departments. He fostered a lively forward thinking postgraduate and undergraduate program, with courses highly applicable to the current statistical problems of the day. He also set up the Statistics and Operations Research Laboratory, known for outreach to industry and public services. He was elected a fellow of Trinity College Dublin in 1971 and Dean of Engineering and System Sciences. Foster died in Dublin on 20 December 2010.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Gordon Foster

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Gordon Foster claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In mathematics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Gordon Foster before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Gordon Foster ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Gordon Foster

In research: Gordon Foster appears in mathematics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Gordon Foster in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Gordon Foster is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1921 births, 2010 deaths, 20th-century Irish mathematicians, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Gordon Foster outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Gordon Foster in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Gordon Foster means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Gordon Foster out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Gordon Foster in simple terms?

Why does Gordon Foster matter?

Because it connects several mathematics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Gordon Foster?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Gordon Foster.