James Watt International Gold Medal facts for kids
The James Watt Medal is a special award given to amazing engineers. It was created in 1937 by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in the United Kingdom. The medal is named after a famous Scottish engineer, James Watt (1736–1819). He invented a much better Watt steam engine in 1781. This invention was super important for the Industrial Revolution, changing how things were made in Great Britain and around the world.
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The James Watt International Gold Medal
The James Watt International Gold Medal is a very important award. It is given by the British Institution of Mechanical Engineers. This medal goes to an outstanding mechanical engineer.
Why the Medal Was Created
The medal was started to remember James Watt's 200th birthday. He was born on January 19, 1736. His inventions changed how we use power.
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers gives this Gold Medal every two years. It is given to an engineer from any country. This person must be worthy of the highest award the Institution can give. It is also the highest award a mechanical engineer can receive.
Who Can Receive the Medal
To choose the winner, the Institution asks for help. They get advice from engineering groups all over the world.
The person who receives the medal should be like James Watt himself. Watt was a scientist, an inventor, and a builder. So, the winner should be an engineer who is known worldwide. They should be recognized for their work in mechanical engineering. They also need to show how they used science to improve mechanical engineering.
Past Winners of the International Gold Medal
Here are some of the engineers who have received the James Watt International Gold Medal:
| Year | Recipient | Nominated by | Achievement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | Sir John Aspinall | The Institution of Mechanical Engineers | Locomotive designer | |
| 1939 | Henry Ford | American Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1941 | Professor Aurel Stodola | Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects, Czechoslovakia Society of Engineers, Engineering Institute of Canada |
Steam turbine engineer | |
| 1943 | Anthony Michell | Institution of Engineers, Australia, South African Institute of Engineers, Engineering Institute of Canada |
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| 1945 | Dr Frederick Lanchester | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1947 | Professor Stephen Timoshenko | Swiss Society of Mechanical Engineers and Architects | ||
| 1949 | Dr Fredrik Ljungström | Swedish Society of Engineers | ||
| 1951 | Dr Hans Henrik Blache | Danish Society of Engineers | ||
| 1953 | Sir Harry Ricardo | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1955 | Dr Igor Sikorsky | American Society of Engineers | ||
| 1957 | Professor Walther Bauersfeld | Verein Deutscher Ingenieure | ||
| 1959 | Sir Claude Gibb | Institution of Engineers, Australia, Institution of Mechanical Engineers |
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| 1961 | Professor Dr Theodore von Karman | American Society of Engineers | ||
| 1963 | Sir William Stanier | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | English mechanical engineer and locomotive designer | |
| 1965 | Professor Sir Geoffrey Taylor | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1967 | Academician Ivan Ivanovitch Artobolevskii | Academy of Sciences of the USSR | ||
| 1969 | Dr Hideo Shima | Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers | Chief engineer of Tōkaidō Shinkansen high speed train | |
| 1971 | Dr Robert R. Gilruth | American Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1973 | The Rt Hon the Lord Hinton of Bankside | Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects | ||
| 1975 | Professor Dr-Ing Siegfried Meurer | Verein Deutscher Ingenieure | ||
| 1977 | Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle | New Zealand Institution of Engineers | ||
| 1979 | Raymond Heacock | American Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1981 | Professor J. P. Den Hartog | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | Professor emeritus and former head of the department of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology | |
| 1983 | Sir Christopher Cockerell | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1985 | Sir Hugh Ford | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1987 | Sir Denis Rooke | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1989 | John E Steiner | Fellowship of Engineering | ||
| 1991 | Soichiro Honda | Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1993 | Frédéric d'Allest | Comitedes Applications Académie des Sciences, France | Aero and space engineer, head of ISAE and Arianespace | |
| 1995 | Eiji Toyoda | Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1997 | Sydney Gillibrand | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 1999 | Professor Sir Bernard Crossland | Institution of Engineers of Ireland | ||
| 2001 | Professor Duncan Dowson | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2003 | Sir Ralph Robins | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2005 | Leroy 'Skip' Fletcher | American Society of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2008 | Professor Emeritus John Spence | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2010 | Professor Roger Morgan Goodall | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2012 | Sir Sze-yuen Chung | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2014 | Professor Richard Parry-Jones | Institution of Mechanical Engineer | ||
| 2016 | Professor Dame Ann Dowling | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | ||
| 2019 | Sir David McMurtry | Institution of Mechanical Engineers | For a lifelong emphasis on research and development | |
| 2021 | Prof. Emeritus Izhak Etsion | Technion - Israel Institute of Technology | For outstanding contributions in the field of Tribology |
The James Watt Medal of Civil Engineers
There is also another award called the James Watt Medal. This one is given by the British Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). It is for engineers who work with energy.
About the ICE James Watt Medal
The Institution of Civil Engineers website explains more about this medal. It is given for papers that have a lot of mechanical engineering content.
This medal is also named after James Watt. Robert Stephenson, who was the President of ICE in 1855-1856, suggested this medal. He wanted the Council to get the medal designs in 1858.
Recent Winners of the ICE Medal
Here are some people who have received the James Watt Medal from the Institution of Civil Engineers:
- 1880s? Basil Wood for his work on Combined Heat and Power.
- 2000 Paul Kassabian, a structural engineer. He is interested in design, dynamic control, and structures that can be unfolded.
- 2000 Professor Sergio Pellegrino, a Professor of Structural Engineering. He specializes in lightweight structures that can be unfolded.
- 2005 Choo Yoo Sang, J W Boh, and L Louca.
- 2009 Dick Fenner and Joan Ko for their paper on making new UK homes more energy efficient.
- 2010 Neil Chapman for a paper about safely getting rid of radioactive waste.
- 2014 Malcolm Joyce.
- 2019 Tobias Lühn and Jutta Geldermann for their work on making power grids better. They used batteries and smart control for solar power.
See also
- List of engineering awards
- List of mechanical engineering awards
