Person

Dakin, William John (1883 - 1950)

Born
23 April 1883
Toxeth Park, Lancashire, England
Died
2 April 1950
Turramurra, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation
Marine zoologist

Summary

William Dakin was a marine zoologist who, having been the inaugural Professor of Biology at the University of Western Australia for seven years, was for 20 years Professor of Zoology at the University of Sydney. At Sydney he provided for the first time specialised marine biology training for New South Wales students. A principal focus of Dakin's research was on osmotic relations of the body of fluids of aquatic animals. He instituted a series of studies of the plankton on the New South Wales coast. His major work on plankton was lost when the ship carrying the manuscript was sunk in WWII. Dakin's influence in the advancement of science was widely felt. Between 1934 and 1944 he was a popular and influential broadcaster for ABC radio where many of his broadcasts were about science. The establishment of the CSIRO fisheries laboratory at Cronulla owed much to his efforts. His most influential book, Australian seashores (1952) was reprinted 11 times and considered a classic work on Australian marine life. During WWII he was Technical Director of Camouflage for the Commonwealth Department of Home Affairs.

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Details

Chronology

1905
Education - BSc, University of Liverpool
1907
Education - MSc, University of Liverpool
1908 - 1910
Career position - 1851 Exhibitioner in Zoology - Heligoland, Norway and Naples, Italy
1911
Education - DSc, University of Liverpool
1911 - 1913
Career position - Lecturer in Zoology, University of Belfast
1913
Life event - Migrated to Australia
1913 - 1915
Career position - President, Royal Society of Western Australia
1913 - 1920
Career position - Inaugural Professor of Biology, University of Western Australia
1920 - 1928
Career position - Professor of Zoology, University of Liverpool
1922 - 1924
Career position - President, Liverpool Biological Society
1924 - 1928
Career position - External Examiner in Zoology, University of London
1928 - 1948
Career position - Professor of Zoology, University of Sydney
1930 - 1931
Career position - President, Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales
1931 - 1950
Award - Life Member, Zoological Society of New South Wales
1934
Award - R. M. Johnston Memorial Medal, Royal Society of Tasmania
1934 - 1935
Career position - President, Linnean Society of New South Wales
1948
Life event - Retired
1948 - 1950
Career position - Emeritus Professor, University of Sydney
1949
Award - Mueller Medal, Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science

Related Corporate Bodies

Published resources

Books

  • Dakin, William J., Great Barrier Reef and some mention of other Australian coral reefs (Melbourne: Australian National Publicity Association, 1950), 135 pp. Details
  • Dakin, William J., W. J. Dakin's classic study Australian seashores: guide to the temperate shores for the beach-lover, the naturalist, the shore-fisherman and the student: fully revised and illustrated by Isobel Bennett (North Ryde, N.SW.: Angus & Robertson, 1987), 411 pp. Details
  • Dakin, William J.: assisted by Isobel Bennett and Elizabeth Pope, Australian seashores: a guide for the beach-lover, the naturalist, the shore fishermen, and the student (Sydney: Angus and Robertson, 1952), 372 pp. Details

Book Sections

Journal Articles

  • Colefax, A. N., 'Obituary: Professor William John Dakin, DSc, FZS', Australian Journal of Science, 12 (6) (1950), 208-209. Details
  • Elias, Ann, 'The ocean in our blood: William Dakin's modern story for ABC radio', Journal of Australian Studies, 37 (4) (2013), 425-37. Details

Resources

See also

  • Prince, J. H., The first one hundred years of the Royal Zoological Society of N.S.W. 1879 - 1979 (Sydney: Royal Zoolgical Society of New South Wales, 1979), 81 pp. Details

Gavan McCarthy [P004098] and Helen Cohn

Created: 20 October 1993, Last modified: 6 October 2023

EOAS ID: biogs/P000344b.htm

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