mathematics

Thomas MacFarland Cherry

Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry rather than just read about it. In short: Sir Thomas MacFarland Cherry FAA, FRS (21 May 1898 – 21 November 1966) was an Australian mathematician, serving as Professor of Mathematics (pure, mixed and applied) at the University of Melbourne from 1929 until his retirement in 1963. Early years Tom was born in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Iris on 21 May 1898 and was educated at Scotch College where in 1914 he was dux, winning exhibitions in algebra, physics and…

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Sir Thomas MacFarland Cherry FAA, FRS (21 May 1898 – 21 November 1966) was an Australian mathematician, serving as Professor of Mathematics (pure, mixed and applied) at the University of Melbourne from 1929 until his retirement in 1963.

Early years Tom was born in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Iris on 21 May 1898 and was educated at Scotch College where in 1914 he was dux, winning exhibitions in algebra, physics and chemistry in the public exams. He proceeded to Ormond College at the University of Melbourne where he studied mathematics, winning prizes and scholarships. After graduating, he enlisted in the AIF in July 1918 and was posted to the Australian Flying Corps. Discharged in December 1918, he decided to commence studying medicine in 1919. However, his godfather Sir John MacFarland, a distinguished mathematician, physicist and the first master of Ormond College since 1881, offered him financial assistance to continue to study mathematics at Cambridge.

Britain Cherry spent the next decade in Britain, first at Trinity College where he was elected a Fellow (1924), then substituting for Edward Arthur Milne at Manchester (1924-1925), and Sir Charles Galton Darwin at Edinburgh (1927).

Australia He returned to Australia in 1929 to the chair of "pure and mixed mathematics" at the University of Melbourne. During the Second World War he worked on research into radar, explosives and operations research. In 1952 he reluctantly assumed the chair of applied mathematics, and from 1950 until his retirement in 1963 and death in 1966, his work in the advancement of the teaching of mathematics at all levels was acknowledged and rewarded by many prestigious bodies. He was knighted in 1965.

Career summary 1918 1st Class Honours, University of Melbourne 1922 Graduated B.A. (Cambridge) 1924 Ph.D. (Cambridge) 1924–8 Fellow Trinity College 1929–63 Chair of Mathematics – University of Melbourne 1948 Pollock Memorial Lecturer – University of Sydney 1950 Sc.D. (Cambridge) 1951 Lyle Medallist, Australian National Research Council 1954 F.R.S. 1954 Foundation Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science 1956-58 1st President of AustMS 1961-63 1st President of the Victorian Computer Society 1961–65 President of A.A.S. 1963 Honorary D.Sc. A.N.U. & University of W.A. 1965 Knight Bachelor

Personal Cherry was a keen mountaineer, and was heavily involved in the Boy Scouts movement. While commissioner of Boy Scouts for Cambridge in 1924, he met Olive Ellen Wright, a Girl Guide commissioner. In 1931 he returned to England and married her on 24 January 1931 at Holy Trinity parish church in Cambridge. He died of myocardial infarction on 21 November 1966 at Kew and was buried in Gisborne cemetery. He was survived by his wife and daughter.

Legacy The TM Cherry Prize awarded annually by ANZIAM since 1969.

References

External links Thomas MacFarland Cherry at the Mathematics Genealogy Project

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Thomas MacFarland Cherry

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry

In research: Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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: Thomas MacFarland Cherry is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1898 births, 1966 deaths, Australian fellows of the Royal Society, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is Thomas MacFarland Cherry in simple terms?

Why does Thomas MacFarland Cherry 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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry?

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 Thomas MacFarland Cherry.