Room, Thomas Gerald (Gerald) (1902 - 1986)

Summary

Gerald Room was a mathematician particularly known for his profound insight into configurations in higher dimensional projective space and his general theory of the freedom of manifolds. His most influential publication was The geometry of determinantal loci (1938). He was Professor of Pure Mathematics at the University of Sydney from 1935 to 1968, having earlier studied and then taught at St John's College, Cambridge between 1920 and- -1935. Room was influential in course of mathematics in New South Wales both at university and secondary school level. As Professor he made continuous improvements in the syllabus and teaching standards. He was for a number of years Chief Mathematics Examiner for the High School Leaving Certificate and Chairman of the New South Wales Mathematics Syllabus Committee, during which time the curriculum was greatly revised.

The T. G. Room Award is made each year by the Mathematical Association of New South Wales to the highest-scoring student in the Higher School Certificate mathematics examination. Room was a founding member of the Australian Mathematical Society and the first Editor of its Journal.

Details

Chronology

Career position - Chairman, New South Wales Mathematics Syllabus Committee and Chief Mathematics Examiner for the High School Leaving Certificate, Australia

1923 -

Education - Bachelor of Arts (BA), University of Cambridge, England

1923 - 1935

Career position - Lecturer in Mathematics, University of Cambridge, England

1925 - 1927

Career position - Lecturer in Mathematics, University of Liverpool, England

1926 - 1928

Career position - Fellow, St Johns College, University of Cambridge, England

1928 - 1935

Career position - Lecturer in mathematics, University of Cambridge

1935 - 1968

Career position - Professor of Pure Mathematics, University of Sydney

1940 - 1941

Career position - Informal, secret military intelligence work based at the University of Sydney

1941

Career position - Military Intelligence Work, Fleet Radio Unit Melbourne (FRUMEL), Commonwealth of Australia and United States of America

1941

Award - Fellow, The Royal Society, London (FRS)

1941

Award - Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal, Australian National Research Council

1942 - 1945

Career position - Military Intelligence Work, Central Bureau, Allied Command of the South-West Pacific Area

1952 - 1956

Career position - Dean, Faculty of Science, University of Sydney

1952 - 1956

Career position - Member of the Senate, University of Sydney

1953 - 1954

Award - Petitioner for the Academy, Founding Fellow, Australian Academy of Science (FAA)

1955 -

Award - Doctorate of Science (ScD), University of Cambridge, England

1955

Award - Doctor of Science (DSc), honoris causa, University of Cambridge

1956 - 1965

Career position - Member of Council, Australian Mathematical Society

1956 - 1986

Career position - Founding Member, Australian Mathematical Society

1959 - 1964

Career position - Editor, Australian Mathematical Society Journal

1960 - 1962

Career position - Member of Council, Australian Academy of Science

1960 - 1962

Career Position - President, Australian Mathematical Society

1960 - 1963

Career position - Member of the Senate, University of Sydney

1960 - 1965

Career position - Dean, Faculty of Science, University of Sydney

1968 -

Award - T.G. Room Award, Given in his honor, Mathematical Association of New South Wales, Australia

1969

Career position - Part-time Lecturer, University of Sydney

1971

Career position - Staff Tutor, North West Region, Open University, England

1972 - 1973

Career position - Course Material Writer, Open University, England

1989

Award (posthumous) - Mathematics Library named in his honor, T.G. Room Library, University of Sydney

Related entries

Archival resources

University of Sydney, Archives

• Thomas Gerald Room - Records, 1926 - 1973, Acc. 1062; University of Sydney, Archives. Details

Published resources

Book Sections

• Mack, John, 'Room, Thomas Gerald (1902-1986), Geometer and Professor of Mathematics' in Australian dictionary of biography, volume 18: 1981 - 1990 L-Z, Melanie Nolan, ed. (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 2012), pp. 364-5. http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/room-thomas-gerald-14198. Details

Journal Articles

• Butler, S. J.; Room, T. G., 'Obituary: Dansie Thomas Sawkins', Australian Journal of Science, 12 (6) (1950), 210-211. Details
• Donovan, P.; and Mack, J., 'Sydney University, T. G. Room and codebreaking in WWII, part II', Australian Mathematical Society gazette, 29 (3) (2002), 141-8. Details
• Donovan, P.; and Mack, J., 'Sydney University, T. G. Room and codebreaking in WWII, part I', Australian Mathematical Society gazette, 29 (2) (2002), 76-84. Details
• Hirschfeld, J. W. P.; and Wall, G. E., 'Thomas Gerald Room 10 November 1902 - 2 April 1986', Biographical memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, 33 (1987), 574-601. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbm.1987.0020. Details
• Hirschfeld, J. W. P.; and Wall, G. E., 'Thomas Gerald Room 1902-1986', Historical Records of Australian Science, 7 (1) (1987), 109-122. https://doi.org/10.1071/HR9870710109. Details

Resources

• Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q5296778. Details
• VIAF - Virtual International Authority File, OCLC, https://viaf.org/viaf/55732347. Details
• 'Room, Thomas Gerald (19021110-19860402)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1474291. Details

Resource Sections

• Hirschfeld, J. W. P.; and Wall, G. E., 'Thomas Gerald Room 1902-1986', in Australian Academy of Science Biographical Memoirs, Australian Academy of Science, 2006, https://www.science.org.au/fellowship/fellows/biographical-memoirs/thomas-gerald-room-1902-1986. Details

See also

• Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal, Australian Academy of Science, Canberra, 2023. https://www.science.org.au/supporting-science/awards-and-opportunities/thomas-ranken-lyle-medal. Details