7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

1/6

Nilmar Janbu,80 years young. He is a Geotechnical Professor Emeritus at the

Norwegian Technical University, Trondheim, Norway.

For half a century Nilmar Janbu has been a driving force behind thedevelopment of the field of Geotechnics, both in Norway and in the World.

Strong in theory, yet with strong interest in practical applications, his exciting

guidance has been his permanent mark. He has captured many with his so

strong, yet friendly personality.

Nilmar Janbu

7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

2/6

G. G. Stokes (1819-1903)

Stokes established the science of hydrodynamics with his law of viscosity

(1851), describing the velocity of a small sphere through a viscous fluid. Stokes

published papers on the motion of incompressible fluids in 1842-43 and on the

friction of fluids in motion and the equilibrium and motion of elastic solids in

1845. In 1849 Stokes was appointed Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at

Cambridge. In 1851 Stokes was elected to the Royal Society and was secretaryof the Society from 1854 to 1884 when he was elected president. He

investigated the wave theory of light, named and explained the phenomenon

of fluorescence in 1852, and in 1854 theorized an explanation of the

Fraunhofer lines in the solar spectrum. He suggested these were caused by

atoms in the outer layers of the Sun absorbing certain wavelengths. However

when Kirchhoff later published this explanation Stokes disclaimed any prior

discovery. Stokes developed mathematical techniques for application to

physical problems, founded the science of geodesy, and greatly advanced thestudy of mathematical physics in England. His mathematical and physical

papers were published in 5 volumes, the first 3 of which Stokes edited himself

in 1880, 1883 and 1891. The last 2 were edited by Sir Joseph Larmor in 1887

and 1891.

http://www.sci.hkbu.edu.hk/scilab/math/Stokes.jpeg

7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

3/6

Prof. Alex Wesley Skempton (June 4, 1914)

Professor Alec Wesley Skempton, Imperial College's first professor of soil

mechanics, was awarded a knighthood in the New Year's honors list forservices to engineering. He has also been nominated as one of the greatest

civil engineers of the 20th century by New Civil Engineer magazine. He

founded the first UK school of soil mechanics in the department of civil

engineering. Professor Skempton served with great distinction as head of the

department of civil engineering. He also acted as consultant on civil

engineering projects throughout the world, perhaps the most notable being the

Mangla dam in Pakistan. More recently, he played a key role in the

investigation following the collapse of the Carsington dam.

7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

4/6

Christian Otto Mohr ( October 8 , 1835 - October 2 , 1918 ) was a German civil

engineer , one of the most celebrated of the nineteenth century . Mohr's interest

had been attracted by the theories of mechanics and the strength of materials ,

and in 1867 , he became professor of mechanics at Stuttgart Polytechnic and,

in 1873 , at Dresden Polytechnic. Mohr had a direct and unpretentious lecturing

style that was popular with his students. In 1874 , Mohr formalised the, until

then only intuitive, idea of a statically determinate structure.

Mohr was an enthusiast for graphical tools and developed the method, for

visually representing stress in three dimensions, previously proposed by Carl

Culmann . In 1882 , he famously developed the graphical method for analysing

stress known as Mohr's circle and used it to propose an early theory of strength

based on shear stress . He also developed the Williot-Mohr diagram for truss

displacements and the Maxwell-Mohr method for analysing statically

indeterminate structures.

http://www.answers.com/topic/october-8http://www.answers.com/topic/1835http://www.answers.com/topic/october-2http://www.answers.com/topic/1918http://www.answers.com/topic/germanyhttp://www.answers.com/topic/civil-engineer-1http://www.answers.com/topic/civil-engineer-1http://www.answers.com/topic/19th-centuryhttp://www.answers.com/topic/strength-of-materialshttp://www.answers.com/topic/1867http://www.answers.com/topic/professorhttp://www.answers.com/topic/stuttgarthttp://www.answers.com/topic/institute-of-technologyhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1873http://www.answers.com/topic/dresdenhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1874http://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminatehttp://www.answers.com/topic/stress-physicshttp://www.answers.com/topic/carl-culmannhttp://www.answers.com/topic/carl-culmannhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1882http://www.answers.com/topic/stress-physicshttp://www.answers.com/topic/shear-stresshttp://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminatehttp://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminatehttp://www.answers.com/topic/october-8http://www.answers.com/topic/1835http://www.answers.com/topic/october-2http://www.answers.com/topic/1918http://www.answers.com/topic/germanyhttp://www.answers.com/topic/civil-engineer-1http://www.answers.com/topic/civil-engineer-1http://www.answers.com/topic/19th-centuryhttp://www.answers.com/topic/strength-of-materialshttp://www.answers.com/topic/1867http://www.answers.com/topic/professorhttp://www.answers.com/topic/stuttgarthttp://www.answers.com/topic/institute-of-technologyhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1873http://www.answers.com/topic/dresdenhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1874http://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminatehttp://www.answers.com/topic/stress-physicshttp://www.answers.com/topic/carl-culmannhttp://www.answers.com/topic/carl-culmannhttp://www.answers.com/topic/1882http://www.answers.com/topic/stress-physicshttp://www.answers.com/topic/shear-stresshttp://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminatehttp://www.answers.com/topic/statically-indeterminate

7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

5/6

Christian Otto Mohr ( October 8 , 1835 - October 2 , 1918 )

Karl Culmann (July 10, 1821 Dec 9, 1881)

German bridge and railway engineer whose graphic methods of structural

analysis have been widely applied to engineering and mechanics. He wrote the

first book on graphic statics, published in 1866. Stress trajectories are one of

the original topics presented in this book. In 1849-1850, Culmann spent two

years traveling in England and the United States to study bridges, which he

http://www.answers.com/topic/october-8http://www.answers.com/topic/1835http://www.answers.com/topic/october-2http://www.answers.com/topic/1918http://www.umr.edu/~be120/lessons/history/culmann/http://www.answers.com/topic/october-8http://www.answers.com/topic/1835http://www.answers.com/topic/october-2http://www.answers.com/topic/1918http://www.umr.edu/~be120/lessons/history/culmann/

7/31/2019 Important Scientists in Geotechical Engineering

6/6

later wrote about in Germany. He designed numerous bridge structures at the

newly organized Zrich Polytechnicum. The works of Culmann, among other

things, have been taken up for the design of the central arched bridges of the

Eiffel Tower, and were also quoted by Pier Luigi Nervi in his patent on the

construction of reinforced concrete-slab floors.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0674007018?ie=UTF8&tag=todayinsci-20&link_code=em1&camp=212341&creative=380621&creativeASIN=0674007018&adid=ead25aa5-561e-428b-8ce7-5d1d8162fdb3http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0674007018?ie=UTF8&tag=todayinsci-20&link_code=em1&camp=212341&creative=380621&creativeASIN=0674007018&adid=ead25aa5-561e-428b-8ce7-5d1d8162fdb3