Kathleen Ollerenshaw
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Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw (nee Timpson) (born 1912) is mathematician and politician. She is from Withington, Manchester.
As a child she loved doing arithmetic problems. Although she became deaf from aged 8, she gained a place at Somerville College Oxford University to study mathematics, despite her teacher's discouragement. She bluffed her way through the interview by guessing the question 'What did you do in the summer holidays?'. She went on to complete a doctorate.
She was married to Colonel Robert Ollerenshaw, to whom she became engaged as an undergraduate. He was a distinguished military surgeon, a pioneer of medical illustration and had been High Sheriff of Greater Manchester from 1978 to 1979.
Ollerenshaw served as a Conservative Councillor for Rusholme for 26 years, became Lord Mayor of Manchester from 1975 to 1976, and was the prime motivator in the creation of the Royal Northern College of Music. She was made a Freeman of the City of Manchester and was an advisor on educational matters to Margaret Thatcher's government in the 1980s.
She published numerous scientific papers, her most significant contribution being to Most-perfect pandiagonal magic squares.
Also a keen amateur astronomer, she donated her telescope to Lancaster University, and an observatory there bears her name.
References
- Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw, To Talk of Many Things: An Autobiography, Manchester Univ Press, 2004, ISBN 0719069874
- Kathleen Ollerenshaw, Herman Bondi, Magic Squares of Order Four, Scholium Intl, 1983, ISBN 0854032010
- Kathleen Ollerenshaw, First citizen, Hart-Davis, MacGibbon, 1977, ISBN 0246109769
- K.M. Ollerenshaw K.M. D.S. Brée, Most-perfect pandiagonal magic squares. Mathematics Today, 1998, 34, 139-143. ISSN 13162042.
- D.S. Brée and K.M. Ollerenshaw, Pandiagonal magic-squares from mixed auxiliary squares. Mathematics Today, 1998, 34, 105-118. ISSN 13162042.
External links
- Interview on BBC Radio 4 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/2004_27_thu_01.shtml?wh_h_hdl)
- Manchester Politicians, with biographical sketch (http://www.manchester2002-uk.com/celebs/politicians6.html)
- The Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw Observatory at Lancaster University (http://www.lancs.ac.uk/depts/physics/resources/observatory/)