Geoffrey Timms facts for kids

Geoffrey Timms (1903–1982) was a very smart British mathematician and a code-breaker. During Second World War, he worked with other brilliant minds like Alan Turing at a secret place called Bletchley Park. Their big job was to break the super secret Enigma code, which was used by the enemy.

Early Life and Education

Geoffrey Timms was born in Bradford, England, on February 16, 1903. His parents were Frederick and Clara Timms.

He loved math and studied it at the University of Leeds. He earned a special degree there in 1925. Later, he continued his studies at Cambridge University and received his PhD in 1928. This is the highest degree you can get at a university. In 1929, he started teaching mathematics at St Andrews University in Scotland.

In 1933, he was chosen to be a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. This is a big honor for scientists and thinkers in Scotland.

Cracking Secret Codes

Geoffrey Timms was known as a mathematical genius. Because of his amazing skills, he was asked to join a top-secret team during the Second World War. This team's mission was to crack the Enigma code. This code was used by the German military to send secret messages. Breaking it was incredibly important for the Allies to win the war.

He worked at Bletchley Park, a secret government center where code-breakers worked day and night. Their work helped save many lives and shorten the war. After the war ended in September 1945, he left his teaching job at St Andrews. He continued to work for the British government's Foreign Office, helping with secret communications. He also worked at GCHQ, which is a government agency that deals with signals intelligence and cyber security.

Later Life

Geoffrey Timms retired from his important work in 1968. He passed away on December 2, 1982, in Auckland, New Zealand.