George H. Bryan

George Hartley Bryan (1864–1928). The originator, with W. E.Williams, of the equations of airplane motion. Bryan's equations are the basis for the analysis of airplane flight dynamics and closed-loop control and for the design of flight simulators. George Hartley Bryan FRS (1 March 1864 – 13 October 1928) was an English applied mathematician who was an authority on thermodynamics and aeronautics. He was born in Cambridge, and was educated at Peterhouse, Cambridge, obtaining his BA in 1886 (as 5th wrangler), MA in 1890, and DSc in 1896.

His work G.H.Bryan's Plane "Bamboo Bird" at Red Wharf Bay, near Benllech, Anglesey. In 1890, Bryan discovered the so-called "wave inertia effect" in axi-symmetric thin elastic shells. This effect is the theoretical basis for modern solid-state gyroscopy using hemispherical or "wine-glass" resonators, which were elaborated by Dr. David D. Lynch, et al. almost a century after Bryan's original discovery. These novel, precise sensors are now developed in the United States, Ukraine, Singapore, Republic of Korea, France, RF, South Africa, and mainland China. They are used for satellite guidance systems, among other applications.

He was appointed as a lecturer at Bangor University in 1896, and within a few months, at 32 years old, he was appointed Chair of Pure and Applied Mathematics. He died in Bordighera, Italy, aged 64.

Awards and honors He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in June 1895. He was a Gold medallist of the Institution of Naval Architects (1901), President of the Mathematical Association (1907), and a Gold medallist of the Aeronautical Society (1914).