Lancelot Ware facts for kids
Lancelot Lionel Ware (born June 5, 1915 – died August 15, 2000) was an English lawyer and scientist. He is best known for helping to start Mensa in 1946. Mensa is a special club for people with very high IQs (intelligence quotients). He created it with another lawyer named Roland Berrill.
Early Life and Education
Lancelot Ware was born in Mitcham, Surrey, England. He was the oldest child of Frederick and Eleanor Ware. He went to Steyning Grammar School and Sutton Grammar School. Later, he studied mathematics and then earned a PhD in biochemistry at Imperial College London.
In June 1980, when he was 65, he married Joan Francesca Rae Quint. He passed away on August 15, 2000, at the age of 85.
Career and Work
Lancelot Ware started his career in medical research. He worked with Sir Henry Hallett Dale at the National Institute for Medical Research in Hampstead, London. He also taught biochemistry at St Thomas' Hospital.
During World War II, Ware worked at Porton Down, a secret research place. After the war, he worked as a scientist for the Boots Company. There, he learned about IQ tests.
In 1945, he began studying law at Lincoln College, Oxford. By 1949, he became a barrister, which is a type of lawyer. He focused on cases about intellectual property, like copyright and patents. This meant he helped people protect their new ideas and inventions.
Ware was also interested in politics. In the 1960s, he became an Alderman for the London County Council (LCC), which was like being a local council member in London. He was given an award called the Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his work with the Institute of Patentees and Inventors. He led this group for many years.
Lancelot Ware retired from being a lawyer in 1987.
Starting Mensa
Mensa began after Lancelot Ware had a conversation on a train with Roland Berrill. Berrill was interested in phrenology, an old idea about how the shape of someone's head could tell you about their personality. Ware believed that IQ tests were a much better way to measure intelligence.
Ware tested Berrill's IQ and found that he scored very high. Because of this, they decided to create a "High IQ club." This club officially started on October 1, 1946.
Lancelot Ware left Mensa for a short time in the 1950s because he didn't agree with how it was being run. However, after Roland Berrill passed away, Ware rejoined the society.
