Biography

 

Updated 12 November 2021

 

Leslie Philip (Les) Pook was born in Middlesex, England in 1935. He obtained a BSc in metallurgy from the University of London in 1956. He started his career at Hawker Siddeley Aviation Ltd, Coventry in 1956. In 1963 he moved to the National Engineering Laboratory, East Kilbride, Glasgow. In 1969, while at the National Engineering Laboratory, he obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Strathclyde. Dr Pook moved to University College London in 1990. He retired formally in 1998 but remained professionally active in the fields of metal fatigue and fracture mechanics. From 1998 to 2009 he was affiliated to University College London as a visiting professor. He now has more tine to pursue long standing interests in recreational mathematics, including flexagons, and in horology, especially synchronous electric clocks. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, and a Fellow of the European Structural Integrity Society. Les married his wife Ann in 1960. They have a daughter, Stephanie, and a son, Adrian. Ann passed away in 2015.