Kathleen Lonsdale facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dame Kathleen Lonsdale
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Lonsdale in 1968
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Kathleen Yardley
28 January 1903 Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland
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| Died | 1 April 1971 (aged 68) London, England
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| Alma mater | Bedford College for Women University College London |
| Known for | X-ray crystallography |
| Awards | Davy Medal (1957) Fellow of the Royal Society |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Crystallographer |
| Institutions | University College London Royal Institution University of Leeds |
| Doctoral advisor | William Henry Bragg |
Dame Kathleen Lonsdale (born Yardley; 28 January 1903 – 1 April 1971) was a brilliant scientist. She was born in Ireland and became a British crystallographer. This means she studied crystals and how their atoms are arranged.
Kathleen Lonsdale was also a pacifist, meaning she believed in peace and was against war. She worked to improve prisons too. She made many important discoveries using X-ray crystallography. For example, she proved that the benzene ring, a common chemical structure, is flat.
She achieved many "firsts" for women in science. She was one of the first two women to become a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1945. This is a very high honor for scientists in the UK. She was also the first woman professor at University College London. Later, she became the first woman president of the International Union of Crystallography and the British Science Association.
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Early Life and Education
Kathleen Yardley was born in Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland. She was the tenth child in her family. When she was five, her family moved to England. They settled in Seven Kings, Essex.
Kathleen went to Downshall Elementary school. Later, she attended Ilford County High School for Girls. But to study advanced math and science, she had to move to the boys' school. This was because the girls' school did not offer these subjects.
She was an excellent student. She got the highest score in physics ever recorded at London University. She earned her first degree in physics from Bedford College for Women in 1922. She then got her Master's degree from University College London in 1924.
Career and Research
In 1924, Kathleen joined a research team at the Royal Institution. This team was led by William Henry Bragg, a famous scientist who studied crystals. She married Thomas Lonsdale in 1927 and moved to the University of Leeds.
From 1929 to 1934, she focused on starting her family. Even while at home, she continued her scientific work. Her husband, Thomas, was a textile chemist and supported her research. He encouraged her to keep working from home and to return to her job when she had the chance.
In 1934, Lonsdale went back to work with Bragg at the Royal Institution. She earned her Doctor of Science (DSc) degree from the University of London in 1936. Besides her work on benzene, she also studied how to create diamonds. She was a pioneer in using X-rays to study crystals.
In 1949, Lonsdale became a professor of chemistry at University College London. She was also the head of the Crystallography Department. She was the first woman to hold a permanent professorship at that college. She held this important position until 1968.
Kathleen Lonsdale was also a keen table tennis player. She used ping pong balls to show her students how molecules are structured. One of her models, showing a silicate group, is now in the Science Museum, London. Later in her career, she studied stones that form in the human body, like kidney stones and gallstones. Some of her crystal models are also in the Science Museum in London.
Personal Life
Kathleen Yardley married Thomas Jackson Lonsdale in 1927. They had three children: Jane, Nancy, and Stephen. Stephen later became a medical doctor.
Beliefs and Activism
Kathleen Lonsdale was raised as a Baptist. But in 1935, she and her husband became Quakers. They were both pacifists and were drawn to the Quaker faith because of its focus on peace.
During the Second World War, she refused to register for civil defense duties. She also refused to pay a fine for this. Because of this, she spent a month in Holloway prison. Her time in prison made her want to improve the prison system. She became an activist for prison reform.
In 1953, she gave an important speech to British Quakers called Removing the Causes of War. She believed in peaceful discussions and was a Christian pacifist.
Death
Kathleen Lonsdale passed away on 1 April 1971. She was 68 years old and died from a type of cancer.
Legacy and Honours
Kathleen Lonsdale received many honors for her work and achievements:
- In 1946, she became an Honorary Member of the Women's Engineering Society.
- In 1956, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. This is a very high honor in Britain.
- In 1966, she was elected the first woman president of the International Union of Crystallography.
- In 1967, she became the first woman president of the British Science Association. She worked hard to encourage young people to study science.
- Buildings at University College London, the University of Limerick, and Dublin City University are named after her.
- In 1969, she received an Honorary Degree from the University of Bath.
- A rare form of diamond found in meteorites, called Lonsdaleite, was named in her honor.
- A plaque was put on her family home in Newbridge in 2003, 100 years after she was born.
- In 2021, a blue plaque was placed at her childhood home in Seven Kings, London.
- The Kathleen Lonsdale room at Friends House in London is also named after her.
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See also
In Spanish: Kathleen Lonsdale para niños
