Richard Evelyn Donohue Bishop, 1 January 1925 - 12 September 1989

Abstract

Richard Evelyn Donohue Bishop, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Brunei University, Uxbridge, died after a short illness at Queen Alexandra’s Hospital, Portsmouth, on Tuesday 12 September 1989. Although he suffered a mild heart attack some 14 months earlier, his death was caused by the combined effects of a hepatic abscess and septicaemia. Ironically, for this very active individual, his heart had fully recovered from the earlier damage. Dick had a fine, clear mind which brought him significant achievements and honours in the scientific world. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society (1980), a Vice-President and Member of the Council of the Royal Society (1986-1988), a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (1977), a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineering, a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects, a Member of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and a Chartered Engineer. Other awards bestowed upon him were Commonwealth Fund Fellow (1949-1951), Fellow of University College London (1964), President of the British Acoustical Society (now the Institute of Acoustics, 1966-1968), Hon. Member, Royal Corps of Naval Constructors (1968), CBE (1979), and Hon. Fellow, Portsmouth Polytechnic (now University, 1982). A distinguished engineer with an international reputation both in mechanical engineering and naval architecture, Dick was recognized as a communicator par excellence in matters of science and engineering. In technical matters he was a man of vision, able to discuss the principles of mathematics and engineering. He sought academic excellence and scholarship in the tasks he set himself and had the ability to take a complex dynamics problem and reduce it to a discussion or analysis of the fundamental principles involved. Although trained as a mechanical engineer, when asked about his professional background the usual response was ‘a dynamicist and a sort of engineer’. There is no doubting his love for dynamics. He enjoyed change - even change for change’s sake - and quickly became bored by statics and steady state, both professionally and in administration.