Great Scot May 2020 Great Scot 159_MAY 2020_ONLINE_V3 | Page 32

NEWS
A CONVERGENCE
OF MATHEMATICIANS
LEFT TO RIGHT: SIR THOMAS
CHERRY (1914), PROFESSOR ERIC
LOVE (’29), DR NICHOLAS SHERIDAN
(’02), DR DANIEL MATHEWS (’97)
Scotch takes pride in developing exceptional mathematicians
The Scotch College Mathematics
department has a long and celebrated
history of educating many of Australia’s most
influential mathematicians, and that legacy
continues to motivate the School’s pursuit of
excellence in mathematical education to this
day. What follows is a brief account of some
of our notable alumni from the last century,
to give an indication of the breadth and
depth of the educational enterprise of the
department, and some appreciation for the
fruit of its labours. (The list is not intended to
be exhaustive.)
Professor Sir Thomas MacFarland
Cherry (SC 1908-14)
Sir Thomas Cherry is undoubtedly one of
Scotch’s most illustrious sons. Graduating
Dux of the School in 1914, he subsequently
studied at the University of Melbourne before
completing a PhD at Trinity College at the
University of Cambridge. The Master of
Trinity, Sir J. J. Thomson (discoverer of the
electron) regarded Cherry’s work as being
of ‘great merit and promise’, and noted he
would ‘likely rise to great eminence’. 1
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Great Scot Issue 159 – May 2020
Cherry returned to Melbourne in
1928, on being appointed as Professor of
Mathematics at the University of Melbourne,
and according to a recent history of
Australian mathematics, ‘was the most
highly regarded of all, before or since’. 2
Cherry saw it as his great and abiding
responsibility to cultivate and develop
mathematics in Australia, being involved
at every level, from helping set exams
with the University School Board, to being
the founding President of the Australian
Mathematical Society, and President of the
Australian Academy of Science. ‘[For] 35
years he devoted himself without reserve
to the welfare of his department, inspiring
staff and students alike; and his unerring
judgment, his breadth of vision, and his
tremendous capacity for work soon made
him the unquestioned leader of mathematics
in Victoria.’ 3
Professor Eric Russell Love
(SC 1923-29)
Professor Love was Co-Dux of Scotch
in 1928, and Dux in 1929. He studied at the
University of Melbourne before completing
a PhD at Trinity College in the University of
Cambridge. He returned to the University
of Melbourne in 1940, and, on Cherry’s
retirement, succeeded him as Head of
Mathematics, remaining active in the
department until 1999.
Professor Ian Hugh Sloan (SC 1942-45)
Professor Sloan studied at the University
of Melbourne before completing a PhD at the
University of London. He was appointed to
an academic post at the University of New
South Wales in 1965, where he works to this
day. Professor Sloan has held numerous
positions of leadership including President
of the Australian Mathematics Society and
Head of Mathematics at the University of
New South Wales.
Dr Neil James Alexander Sloane
(SC 1952-55)
Dr Sloane studied at the University of
Melbourne before completing a PhD at
Cornell. He worked for many years at AT&T
Bell Labs, but is best known for being the
founder of The On-Line Encyclopaedia