Derek Nudd's Blog - Posts Tagged "danckwerts"

Life on the Edge: Peter Danckwerts GC MBE Frs by Peter Varey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Many readers associate the name Danckwerts with the admiral of that name. This biography of his son Peter casts light on a very different but no less remarkable man.
A research chemist in 1939 and thus in a 'reserved occupation' he could have passed the war in relative comfort and safety, but chose to sign up with the RNVR and was quickly pitched into the dark arts of bomb disposal. Working through the London Blitz threw up an interesting question of precedence. If a suspect device was a bomb the army (usually first on the scene) would deal with it. If a mine they would clear the area and call the navy.
The constant, lethal battle of wits between the mine designers and countermeasures officers is well illustrated by the book's 'Backgrounder' cut-outs which give technical and social context throughout the work.
Danckwerts' post-war career is equally fascinating, taking in MIT and Cambridge as a founding father of chemical engineering as an independent discipline in the UK.
The book is well written (if not quite a page-turner) by an author who clearly knows the subject. There is an index and a comprehensive list of sources but no notes.



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