Biographical entry Lightfoot, Gerald (1877 - 1966)

Summary

Gerald Lightfoot was Secretary of the CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) from 1926 to 1944. He also established their first scientific bibliographic reference service and was the founding editor of the Journal of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. Prior to this, Lightfoot had worked with the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics, the Advisory Council of Science and Industry and was Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Science and Industry. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society (FRSS) in 1915.

Details

Events

1898

Education - Bachelor of Arts (BA) completed at the University of Cambridge, UK

1902 - 1906

Career position - Called to the Bar of the Middle Temple, UK

1906

Life event - Migrated to Australia (Melbourne?)

1907 - 1916

Career position - Draftsman and Computer with the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics

1912

Education - Master of Arts (MA) completed at the University of Cambridge, UK

1914 - 1916

Career position - Lecturer in Economics and Industrial Law at the University of Melbourne

1915 -

Award - Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society (FRSS)

1916

Career position - Overseas trip with the Advisory Council of Science and Industry, USA and UK

August 1916 - c. September 1919

Career position - Secretary to the executive committee of the Advisory Council of Science and Industry

1920 -

Career position - Member of the Commonwealth Prickly Pear Board

c. 1921 - c. 1926

Career position - Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Science and Industry

1926 - 1944

Career position - Secretary of CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)

1927 - 1930

Career position - Founding Editor of Journal of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

1929

Career position - Visits to North America, Britain and Europe for CSIR

1937

Career position - Visits to North America, Britain and Europe for CSIR

c. 1942 - 1947

Career position - Retired, but kept on as a consultant to CSIR

Published resources

Books

• Currie, George; Graham, John, The Origins of CSIRO: Science and the Commonwealth Government, 1901-1926, CSIRO, Melbourne, 1966, 203 pp. Details

Book Sections

• McDonald, D. I., 'Lightfoot, Gerald (1877-1966)', in Bede Nairn and Geoffrey Serle (eds), Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 10, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 1986, pp. 99-100. Also available at http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A100093b.htm. Details

Online Resources

• National Library of Australia, 'Lightfoot, Gerald', Trove, National Library of Australia and the Australian National Maritime Museum Darling Harbour, 2009, http://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1468529. Details

See also

• Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, Technology in Australia 1788-1988, Online edn, Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre, Melbourne, 3 May 2000, http://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/tia/scripts/tia-dynindex.php3?EID=P001256. Details
• Wisdom, John, A History of Defence Science in Australia, Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Melbourne, 1995, 267 pp. Details