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Thomas Alty

1899 – 1982

Scottish physicist and university administrator

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About Thomas Alty

Lived 1899 – 1982 (aged 82). Thomas Alty was a physicist.

Thomas Alty (10 September 1899 – 2 May 1982) was a Scottish physicist and university administrator who became Chancellor of Rhodes University in South Africa.

Life

He was born in Liverpool on 10 September 1899.

He studied Science at Liverpool University then did postgraduate studies at Cambridge University. In 1924 he began lecturing in Physics at Durham University. In 1925 aged only 25 he was made a Professor of Physics at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. In 1934 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

In 1935 he returned to Britain as Professor of Applied Physics at Glasgow University. In 1936 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposers were Edward Taylor Jones, John Walton, Sir Edward Battersby Bailey and John Graham Kerr. He resigned and was re-elected in 1942. His second proposers were Edward Hindle, Sir Edmund Taylor Whittaker, James Pickering Kendall and James Ritchie.

In 1948 he left Britain again to become a Master at Rhodes University in South Africa in 1951 becoming both Principal and Vice Chancellor. Glasgow University gave him an honorary doctorate (LLD) in 1953.

He died in Birmingham in England on 2 May 1982.

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Important facts

Birth century
Died
Occupation
Education
University of Glasgow
Awards
Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada; Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh

People in Thomas Alty's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Thomas Alty's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Thomas Alty?

Scottish physicist and university administrator

When was Thomas Alty born?

Thomas Alty was born on 10 September 1899.

When did Thomas Alty die?

Thomas Alty died on 2 May 1982.

What was Thomas Alty's occupation?

Thomas Alty was a physicist.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Thomas Alty

· Wikidata: Q29171999

· DBpedia: Thomas Alty

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Thomas Alty. https://biography.guide/thomas-alty/

MLA: "Thomas Alty." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/thomas-alty/.

Chicago: "Thomas Alty." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/thomas-alty/.

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