mathematics

Mavis Hinds

Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds rather than just read about it. In short: Mavis Kathleen Hinds (1929–2009) was an English meteorologist who, together with Fred Bushby, pioneered the use of computers to carry out meteorological calculations in the UK. She studied Mathematics at University College London and on graduating joined the UK Meteorological (Met) Office in 1951, attending their Initial Forecasting Course that year.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Mavis Kathleen Hinds (1929–2009) was an English meteorologist who, together with Fred Bushby, pioneered the use of computers to carry out meteorological calculations in the UK. She studied Mathematics at University College London and on graduating joined the UK Meteorological (Met) Office in 1951, attending their Initial Forecasting Course that year. She went on to work with Bushby in using the Lyons Electronic Office (LEO), an early computer developed by J. Lyons & Co, becoming an expert in writing, running and correcting computer programs for weather forecasting. She was seen at that time as one of the first prominent female meteorologists and also the first to play a leading role in the development of numerical weather prediction, both in the UK and worldwide.

Early life and education Hinds passed her Higher School Certificate in pure mathematics, applied mathematics and physics. This was an ideal combination of subjects for the study of meteorology in which she was already developing an interest. On the strength of her examination results, she was awarded a scholarship and a place to read Mathematics at University College London.

Research and career From 1951 Hinds worked at the UK Met Office as part of their Forecast Research Division, which had been set up in 1949 in Dunstable. Hinds, as part of the Division, was instrumental in the development of numerical weather prediction (NWP). The earliest days of NWP in the late 1940s relied on hand calculation, but as electronic computing machines began to be developed in the US (ENIAC) and the UK (EDSAC and LEO), NWP grew in reliability and prevalence. In 1954, at a meeting of the Royal Meteorological Society, Fred Bushby and Hinds presented the first computer-based baroclinic forecast in Europe. Since 1951, they had been making use of the computing power of LEO, the world's first business computer, developed by J. Lyons & Co caterers. Because in the early 1950s the UK Met Office had no in-house computing facilities, calculating power had to be obtained from part-time use of LEO and the Ferranti Mark 1 Star at the University of Manchester. Use of these very early computers involved working unsociable hours when the machines were not being used by others. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Hinds worked with Bushby and others on a series of published papers that detailed the developments made. In 1981, Hinds reflected on the impact of computing on weather prediction and in 1994 contributed a chapter about the history of Met Office computerisation to Peter Bird's book on the development of the LEO computers. Hinds later worked in management roles before her retirement in 1989.

References

External links https://www.leo-computers.org.uk/reports.html

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Mavis Hinds

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds

In research: Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds 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: Mavis Hinds is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1929 births, 2009 deaths, Alumni of University College London, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is Mavis Hinds in simple terms?

Why does Mavis Hinds 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 Mavis Hinds?

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 Mavis Hinds.