biology

Harry Smith (microbiologist)

Harry Smith (microbiologist) is a biology 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist) rather than just read about it. In short: Harry Smith (7 August 1921 – 10 December 2011) was a British microbiologist, and Professor of Microbiology, at the University of Birmingham. Life He was born in Northampton, the son of bookmaker Harry Smith, was educated at Northampton Grammar School and earned a degree in pharmacy at University College Nottingham in 1942.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Harry Smith (7 August 1921 – 10 December 2011) was a British microbiologist, and Professor of Microbiology, at the University of Birmingham.

Life He was born in Northampton, the son of bookmaker Harry Smith, was educated at Northampton Grammar School and earned a degree in pharmacy at University College Nottingham in 1942. For the rest of the war he worked at Boots in Nottingham on the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, and was awarded a BSc in Chemistry by the University of London. In 1945, he was appointed assistant professor at University College, where he was awarded a PhD in biochemistry for the successful conclusion of a research project. In 1947 he became a researcher at the Microbiological Research Establishment at Porton Down. There he carried out research on the mechanisms of anthrax infection using live animals and its possible applications in chemical warfare. From 1965 to 1988, he was Chair of Microbiology at the University of Birmingham, subsequently becoming Emeritus Professor.

Awards and honours He was president of the Society for General Microbiology (now known as the Microbiology Society) and of the 14th International Congress of Microbiology. In 1979 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society and in 1991 delivered the Leeuwenhoek Lecture on the subject of the influence of the host on microbes that cause disease. In the 1993 Queen's Birthday Honours Smith was appointed a Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to the Ministry of Defence.

Family In 1947, Harry Smith married Janet Holmes; they had one son and one daughter.

Memorial Lecture A Memorial Lecture in Harry Smith's honour is associated with the Institute of Microbiology & Infection at the University of Birmingham and is given annually by a world-leading scientist or policymaker in the field of microbiology. Previous Harry Smith Memorial Lecturers include Dame Sally Davies, Professor David Holden, Professor Pascale Cossart, Arturo Casadevall, Liz Sockett, Mihai Netea, Bonnie Bassler, and Gordon Dougan.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Harry Smith (microbiologist)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Harry Smith (microbiologist) claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist) 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist) 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist)

In research: Harry Smith (microbiologist) appears in biology 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist) 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: Harry Smith (microbiologist) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1921 births, 2011 deaths, Academics of the University of Nottingham, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Harry Smith (microbiologist) 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist) in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is Harry Smith (microbiologist) in simple terms?

Harry Smith (7 August 1921 – 10 December 2011) was a British microbiologist, and Professor of Microbiology, at the University of Birmingham. Life He was born in Northampton, the son of bookmaker Harry Smith, was educated at Northampton Grammar School and earned a degree in pharmacy at University Co…

Why does Harry Smith (microbiologist) matter?

Because it connects several biology 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 Harry Smith (microbiologist)?

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 Harry Smith (microbiologist).