{{short description|British engineer-scientist (1935–2020)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}} {{Use British English|date=April 2018}} {{British barrelled name|Ffowcs Williams|Williams}} {{Infobox academic | name = John Ffowcs Williams | honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|FRSA|FRAeS|FInstP|FREng}} | image = | alt = | caption = | birth_name = Shôn Eirwen Ffowcs Williams | birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1935|5|25}} | birth_place = Wales | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2020|12|12|1935|5|25}} | death_place = North Wales, Wales | spouse = {{marriage|Anne Mason|1959}}<ref name="whoswho"/> | awards = Sir Frank Whittle Medal (2002) | education = {{Plainlist| * Great Ayton Friends' School * Derby Technical College}} | alma_mater = University of Southampton<ref name="whoswho"/> | thesis_title = On Noise from Convected Turbulence | thesis_year = 1961 | school_tradition = | doctoral_advisor = Elfyn Richards<ref name=mathgene/> | academic_advisors = | influences = <!--must be referenced from a third-party source--> | discipline = Engineering | sub_discipline = {{Plainlist | * Acoustics * Fluid mechanics}} | workplaces = {{Plainlist | * Imperial College, London<ref name="whoswho"/> * University of Cambridge * Emmanuel College, Cambridge}} | doctoral_students = {{Plainlist| * David Crighton<ref name=mathgene>{{MathGenealogy}}</ref><ref name=criphd>{{cite thesis|degree=PhD|publisher=University of London|title=Wave motion and vibration induced by turbulent flow|first= David George|last=Crighton|date=1969|url=https://spiral.imperial.ac.uk/handle/10044/1/15756|id={{EThOS|uk.bl.ethos.623253}}|website=spiral.imperial.ac.uk|oclc=930650746|hdl=10044/1/15756}} {{free access}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1121/1.1936718| title = Noise from Convected Turbulence| journal = Journal of the Acoustical Society of America| volume = 33| issue = 11| pages = 1675| year = 1961| last1 = Williams | first1 = J. E. F.| bibcode = 1961ASAJ...33Q1675W| doi-access = free}}</ref> * Ann Dowling{{fact|date=January 2024}} * Steve Furber<ref name=mathgene/><ref name=furberphd>{{cite thesis |degree=PhD |first=Stephen Byram|last=Furber |title=Is the Weis-Fogh principle exploitable in turbomachines? |publisher=University of Cambridge |date=1979 |url=http://ulmss-newton.lib.cam.ac.uk/vwebv/holdingsInfo?bibId=8510|id={{EThOS|uk.bl.ethos.456071}}|author-link=Steve Furber|website=lib.cam.ac.uk|oclc=500446535|doi=10.17863/CAM.11472}}</ref><ref name=isthe>{{Cite journal | last1 = Furber | first1 = S. B. | author-link1 = Steve Furber| last2 = Williams | first2 = J. E. F. | author-link2 = John Ffowcs Williams| doi = 10.1017/S0022112079001166 | title = Is the Weis-Fogh principle exploitable in turbomachinery? | journal = Journal of Fluid Mechanics | volume = 94 | issue = 3 | pages = 519 | year = 1979 | bibcode = 1979JFM....94..519F | s2cid = 222345512 }}</ref> }} | notable_students = | main_interests = {{Plainlist | * Aeroacoustics * Fluid dynamics}} | notable_works = | notable_ideas = Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings analogy | influenced = <!--must be referenced from a third-party source--> | signature = | signature_alt = }} [[File:Emmanuel College, St Andrew's Street, Cambridge.jpg|thumb|Emmanuel College, Cambridge ]]
'''John''' "'''Shôn'''" '''Eirwyn Ffowcs Williams''' {{efn|English pronunciation: {{IPAc-en|ˈ|ʃ|ɔː|n|_|ˈ|aɪər|w|ɪ|n|_|ˈ|f|aʊ|k|s}} {{respell|SHAWN|_|IRE|win|_|FOWKS}}; Welsh pronunciation: {{IPA|cy|ʃoːn ˈɛirʊɨn ˈfɔʊks|}}.}} (25 May 1935 – 12 December 2020) was Emeritus Rank Professor of Engineering at the University of Cambridge and a former Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge (1996–2002).<ref name="emmanuel">{{cite web|url=http://www.emma.cam.ac.uk/teaching/fellows/display/index.cfm?fellow=43 |title=Emmanuel College Fellows |archive-date=13 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121213090656/http://www.emma.cam.ac.uk/teaching/fellows/display/index.cfm?fellow=43 |url-status=dead }}</ref> He may be best known for his contributions to aeroacoustics, in particular for his work on Concorde. Together with one of his students, David Hawkings,<ref name=hawkingsphd>{{cite thesis|degree=PhD|publisher=University of London|title=Some forced wave problems in fluid mechanics|first= David Leonard|last=Hawkings|date=1968|url=https://spiral.imperial.ac.uk/handle/10044/1/15859|id={{EThOS|uk.bl.ethos.623038}}|website=spiral.imperial.ac.uk|oclc=894599420|hdl=10044/1/15859}} {{free access}}</ref> he introduced the far-field integration method in computational aeroacoustics based on Lighthill's acoustic analogy, known as the Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings analogy.<ref name="WilliamsHawkings1969">{{cite journal|last1=Williams|first1=J. E. F.|last2=Hawkings|first2=D. L.|title=Sound Generation by Turbulence and Surfaces in Arbitrary Motion|journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences|publisher=Royal Society|volume=264|issue=1151|year=1969|pages=321–342|issn=1364-503X|doi=10.1098/rsta.1969.0031|bibcode=1969RSPTA.264..321W|s2cid=19155680}}</ref>
Ffowcs was elected as a member into the National Academy of Engineering in 1995 for contributions to the theory of jet noise, and other aspects of aeroacoustics and hydrodynamics.
==Education and early life== Born in Wales on 25 May 1935, Ffowcs Williams was educated at the Great Ayton Friends' School and Derby Technical College.<ref name="whoswho">Anon (2017) {{Who's Who | title=Ffowcs Williams, Prof. John Eirwyn | id = U15677| edition = online Oxford University Press|location=Oxford}} {{doi|10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.15677}} {{subscription required}}</ref> He served an engineering apprenticeship with Rolls-Royce before going to the University of Southampton, he always maintained a strong commitment to bring academic research to bear on industrial problems. He was awarded Bachelor of Science degree and a PhD from the University of Southampton in 1961 for research supervised by Elfyn Richards.<ref name=mathgene/>
==Career and research== He cofounded Topexpress Ltd, a consultancy company in Cambridge specialising in engineering science, was executive consultant to Rolls-Royce and a director of VSEL plc. For 25 years he led the division in which the University of Cambridge's Fluid Mechanics, Aeronautics, Thermodynamics, and Turbomachinery work is concentrated. {{citation needed|date=December 2013}}
He was admitted to his Professorial Fellowship at Emmanuel in 1973; he was the longest-serving professor in the University when he retired from his chair in 2002. He taught engineering for the College but, before becoming Master his main college contribution was serving on the Governing Body and its committees. He was the first holder of the Rank Chair of engineering established in 1972 in the field of acoustics, coming to Cambridge from Imperial College London,<ref name="whoswho"/> where he held the Rolls-Royce Chair in theoretical acoustics. His speciality was noise and vibration caused by unsteady flow. His main achievement was to persuade very good research students to tackle important but interesting problems which ranged from the aeroacoustics of supersonic flight, to the quietening of underwater platforms. His work helped make anti-sound useful for noise control and for stabilising unstable aeromechanical systems. {{citation needed|date=December 2013}}
His doctoral students include David Crighton,<ref name=mathgene/><ref name=criphd/> Steve Furber,<ref name=mathgene/><ref name=furberphd/><ref name=isthe/> and Ann Dowling.{{fact|date=January 2024}}
===Awards and honours=== * He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) in 1988<ref name="List of Fellows">{{cite web|title=List of Fellows|url=http://www.raeng.org.uk/about-us/people-council-committees/the-fellowship/list-of-fellows|website=raeng.org.uk|access-date=16 October 2014|archive-date=8 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160608094405/http://www.raeng.org.uk/about-us/people-council-committees/the-fellowship/list-of-fellows|url-status=dead}}</ref> * In 1984 he was awarded the Rayleigh Medal by the UK Institute of Acoustics.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-02-18 |title=In memory of Professor John 'Shôn' Ffowcs-Williams, 1935-2020 |url=https://www.eng.cam.ac.uk/news/memory-professor-john-sh-n-ffowcs-williams-1935-2020 |access-date=2026-02-13 |website=Department of Engineering |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=John E. Ffwocs Williams 1935-2020 |url=https://nae.edu/290387/JOHN-E-FFOWCS-WILLIAMS-19352020 |access-date=2026-02-13 |website=NAE Website |language=en}}</ref> * In 1989 he was awarded the Médaille Étrangère by the French Acoustic Society (SFA).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfa.asso.fr/archives/hitorique_pm/med_etrangere.htm|title= Prix et médailles de la SFA, Médaille Étrangère}}</ref> * In 1995 he was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering * For his contributions to the foundations and applications of Aeroacoustics, which have enabled dramatic reductions in the noise of aircraft and submarines he was awarded the Sir Frank Whittle Medal by the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=129 |publisher=The Royal Academy of Engineering |title=Through the sound barrier without a boom? |date=17 May 2002 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111214014145/http://raeng.org.uk/news/releases/shownews.htm?NewsID=129 |archive-date=14 December 2011 }}</ref> * He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society (FRAeS)<ref name="whoswho"/> * He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA)<ref name="whoswho"/> * He was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Physics (FinstP)<ref name="whoswho"/>
==Personal life== Williams married Anne Mason in 1959.<ref name="whoswho"/> He died on 12 December 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tribute page for Shôn FFOWCS WILLIAMS|url=https://funeral-notices.co.uk/notice/ffowcs+williams/4902420|website=funeral-notices.co.uk|access-date=2021-02-10|date=|last=|first=}}</ref>
==Notes== {{notelist}}
==References== {{reflist}}
{{s-start}} {{s-aca}} {{s-bef|before=Norman St John-Stevas}} {{s-ttl|title=Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge|years=1996–2002}} {{s-aft|after=Lord Wilson of Dinton}} {{s-ach|aw}} {{s-bef|before=Tim Berners-Lee}} {{s-ttl|title=Sir Frank Whittle Medal|years=2002}} {{s-aft|after=Roland Clift}} {{s-end}}
{{Masters of Emmanuel College}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ffowcs Williams, John}} Category:1935 births Category:2020 deaths Category:Academics of Imperial College London Category:Masters of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Category:Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering Category:Fellows of the Institute of Physics Category:Fellows of the Royal Aeronautical Society Category:Place of birth missing Category:British fluid dynamicists Category:Professors of engineering (Cambridge) Category:Alumni of the University of Southampton Category:20th-century Welsh engineers Category:21st-century Welsh engineers