mathematics

Harold Ramkissoon

Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon rather than just read about it. In short: Harold Ramkissoon (14 April 1942 – 15 November 2024) was a Trinidadian mathematician, academic, and science advocate known for his work in fluid dynamics. He served as Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at the University of the West Indies, and was an independent senator of the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Harold Ramkissoon (14 April 1942 – 15 November 2024) was a Trinidadian mathematician, academic, and science advocate known for his work in fluid dynamics. He served as Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at the University of the West Indies, and was an independent senator of the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago.

Early life and education Harold Ramkissoon was born on 14 April 1942, in Tabaquite, Trinidad, and grew up in Marabella. He attended Tabaquite RC Primary School and later Presentation College. In 1966, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from the University of the West Indies (UWI). He completed a Master of Science in Mathematics at the University of Toronto in 1969 and a Ph.D. in applied mathematics at the University of Calgary in 1975. His doctoral research focused on fluid dynamics, including micropolar fluids, and marangoni instabilities. In 2019, Ramkissoon received an honorary doctorate from the University of the West Indies and the Faculty of Science and Technology’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Career Ramkissoon joined the University of the West Indies in 1976 as a lecturer in mathematics. He was promoted to senior lecturer in 1982, reader in mathematics in 1990, and, in 1998, became the first West Indian to be appointed to a personal chair in mathematics at UWI. He retired in 2007 and was named professor emeritus. He collaborated with institutions such as Cambridge University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Ramkissoon authored over 85 peer-reviewed research papers and contributed to five books in applied mathematics. Ramkissoon worked to advance science and technology in the Caribbean. He led the Caribbean Academy of Sciences (1994–1998) and the Caribbean Scientific Union (2002–2004). He founded the Caribbean Congress of Fluid Dynamics and chaired regional scientific conferences. In 2014, Ramkissoon was appointed Chair of the CARICOM Science and Technology (S&T) Committee, launched by Prime Minister Keith Mitchell of Grenada. From 2010 to 2013, he served as an independent senator in the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago, advocating for policies supporting research and development. He also established the Trinidad and Tobago National Mathematics Olympiad to promote interest in mathematics and science among young people. In 2017, Harold Ramkissoon launched his autobiography, My Journey, in Trinidad and then in Guyana through events organized by the University of the West Indies, the University of Guyana and the Ministry of Education. Ramkissoon was a founding member and president of the Caribbean Academy of Sciences. He held executive roles in organizations such as the InterAcademy Partnership and the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS). He participated in the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, which received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995, and was a fellow of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. He was also a corresponding member of science academies in Cuba and Venezuela.

Death and tributes Ramkissoon died on 15 November 2024, at the age of 82. The Office of the President of Trinidad and Tobago and the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago acknowledged his contributions and achievements on 26 November.

Awards and recognition Ramkissoon received several awards for his contributions to education, including the Chaconia Gold Medal in 2000, the Simón Bolívar Academic Gold Medal in 2001, and the Caricom Science Award in 2006. He was awarded honorary Doctor of Science degrees from the University of Technology, Jamaica, in 2011, and the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, in 2019. Ramkissoon was a recipient of fellowships from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and the Fulbright Foundation, and he was inducted into the CARISCIENCE Hall of Fame in 2015.

Books Ramkissoon’s published works include:

Differential Equations (2011) The Element of Calculus (2010, with C. De Matas) Lubricated Transport of Viscous Materials (1998, editor), Kluwer Academic Publishers. Complex Analysis (1998, with B. Tom) Differential Complex Analysis (1996, with B. Tom)

Selected papers "Drag on an Axially Symmetric Body in the Stokes' Flow of Micropolar Fluids" Authors: H. Ramkissoon and S.R. Majumdar, Physics of Fluids, vol. 19, pp. 16–21, 1976. "Representations in Hydrodynamics" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Acta Mechanica, vol. 28, pp. 49–53, 1977. "Potentials and Green's Functions in Micropolar Fluid Theory" Authors: H. Ramkissoon and S.R. Majumdar, Zeitschrift für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik (Z.A.M.M.), vol. 60, pp. 249–255, 1980. "Integral Representations in Hydrodynamics" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Acta Mechanica, vol. 50, pp. 119–125, 1983. "On a Planar Exterior Problem in Linear Elasticity" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Quarterly of Applied Mathematics, vol. 43, pp. 135–141, 1985. "Stokes Flow Past a Slightly Deformed Fluid Sphere" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Zeitschrift für Angewandte Mathematik und Physik (Z.A.M.P.), vol. 37, pp. 859–866, 1986. "Stokes Flow Past a Reiner-Rivlin Liquid Sphere" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Zeitschrift für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik (Z.A.M.M.), vol. 69, pp. 259–261, 1989. "Non-Newtonian Flow Between Concentric Cylinders" Authors: H. Ramkissoon and C.V. Easwaran, Zeitschrift für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik (Z.A.M.M.), vol. 72, 1993 "Visco-Elastic Flow in Tubes Subjected to Pulses" Authors: H. Ramkissoon and S.R. Majumdar, International Journal of Engineering Science, vol. 33, pp. 217–221, 1995. "Stokes Flow Past a Non-Newtonian Spheroid" Author: H. Ramkissoon, Zeitschrift für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik, vol. 78, pp. 61–66, 1997. "Marangoni Instabilities in a Two-Layer Fluid System" Authors: H. Ramkissoon and D. Comissiong, Journal of Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics, vol. 26, pp. 243–253, 2001. "On Thermal Instabilities in a Viscoelastic Fluid Subject to Internal Heat Generation" Authors: H. Ramkissoon, D. Comissiong, T. Dass, and A. Sankar, World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, vol. 80, pp. 826–833, 2011.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Harold Ramkissoon

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon

In research: Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon 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: Harold Ramkissoon is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1942 births, 2024 deaths, 20th-century mathematicians, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Harold Ramkissoon 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.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Harold Ramkissoon” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Harold Ramkissoon in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Harold Ramkissoon in simple terms?

Why does Harold Ramkissoon 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 Harold Ramkissoon?

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 Harold Ramkissoon.