| Department of Mathematics and Statistics |
A Necessary Balance: Alec and Harry Aitken 1920-1935
P.C. Fenton
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8. Appointment to the University
The discomforts of Westfield House in winter, its stone floors, icy passages and soap-devouring rats, were redeemed by the emerging beauty of the countryside as spring turned into summer. The house was opened up and Winifred and Alec wandered about the neighbourhood, pushing Margaret in a pram. In June they received notice to quit and moved, on foot like refugees, Alec carrying their belongings in the pram, to a furnished house at 42 Boswall Terrace.60
In July Aitken was appointed lecturer in Actuarial Mathematics (and Statistics and Mathematical Economics) and in October began teaching to evening classes, in addition to resuming his research.
Prof. Whittaker has been preparing a new edition of a book of his of which the first and second impressions have sold out, and I have not only been rewriting a certain chapter which has been rendered antiquated by some of my own research, but have had to correct the proof sheets. All this has been in addition to lecturing, examining and general reading, (I am learning German, Italian, Swedish and Danish, in order to understand mathematical papers written in those languages) and Winnie has had influenza. The life of a research student and lecturer is not entirely a primrose path, you can see, and there is always work to do.61
They left Boswall Terrace for their old address of 15 Denhamgreen Place in December, and spent part of Christmas day with a Dr Gibbs, an Edinburgh surgeon originally from Nelson, Winifred’s home town in New Zealand. Aitken observed with uncharacteristic complacency,
[There] was a lady from Corsica, Mlle. Loussigny, who is taking an Arts Course at the University here and is studying Carlyle’s “French Revolution”. I have met people from every part of the world in Edinburgh.62
| 60 | ‘Early on there was extremely little money; after I was born Mother sold one botany book a week to help make ends meet.’ MM to me 19 July 1994. |
| 61 | ACA to Pearl, 28 Dec. 1925. |
| 62 | ACA to Pearl, 28 Dec. 1925. |
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