Childhood

Frank Land and his twin brother Ralph, 1934

Life story interviews allow scientists to tell us rich and complex stories of their childhoods that evoke the era in which they grew up. Many of them draw attention to aspects of their younger selves that resonate with their later scientific careers. Frequently they remember how they learned skills that remained useful to them in later life, or provoked their curiosity about the natural world. Sometimes they flirted with danger, sailing out to sea or making rudimentary gunpowder or bombs. For many there is a strong sense of scientific careers fostered in childhood and encouraged by parents, though as Janet Thomson’s recollections reveal, this was not always the case.

Related Audio Clips

The following clips are short extracts from an in-depth interview.
To listen to the full interview visit http://sounds.bl.uk

Alan Smith: making bombs 00:02:03

Alan Smith describes childhood bomb making in the 1950s.

Julia King: dressmaking and mending sewing machines 00:03:15

Julia King recalls dressmaking in childhood in the 1960s, and the necessity of mending her mother's sewing machine.

John Nye: Meccano and science kits 00:01:21

John Nye recalls childhood play with Meccano and science kits in the 1920s and 1930s.

James Lovelock: childhood reading of Wade's 'Organic Chemistry' 00:01:29

James Lovelock remembers 'devotional' reading of Wade's 'Organic Chemistry' as a child in the 1920s.

Chris Rapley: trainspotting 00:02:48

Chris Rapley remembers the development of childhood interest in trains through the 1950s and 1960s.

Anthony Laughton: childhood boating 00:02:34

Anthony Laughton describes the development of his and his brother's interest in boating and sailing as a child in the 1930s.

Stanley Evans: playing with radio equipment as adult and child 00:01:47

Stanley Evans discusses how his work at Jodrell Bank in the 1950s reminded him of playing with radio equipment in his childhood.

Fred Vine: childhood interest in maps and aerial views 00:02:39

Fred Vine tells story of an event at school in 1950, reflecting his childhood interest in and ability to visualise landscape from above.

Geoff Tootill: making a radio alarm 00:03:15

Geoff Tootill talks about making a radio alarm clock in his youth in the 1930s.

John Woods: relations between disability and diving 00:00:48

Professor John Woods on relations between disability and diving.

Stephanie Shirley: escaping from Nazi Germany aboard a Kindertransport 00:04:47

Stephanie Shirley recalls escaping from Nazi Germany aboard a Kindertransport to Britain, and how traumatic childhood experiences affected her outlook on life.

James Lovelock: childhood visits to the Science Museum 00:02:33

James Lovelock recalls childhood visits to London's Science Museum in the 1920s.

Frederick Dainton: putting on Shakespeare at the Central Secondary School, Sheffield 00:02:03

Frederick Dainton recalls his involvement with productions of Shakespeare’s plays during his schooldays in Sheffield in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

Colin Humphreys: childhood disabilities 00:02:15

Colin Humphreys talks about childhood disabilities.

John Scott-Scott: an interest in model engines 00:01:59

Aeronautical engineer John Scott-Scott discusses his lifetime hobby of collecting model engines.

Janet Thomson: father's view of women's roles 00:01:19

Janet Thomson recalls her father's views on male and female employment in the 1950s.

George Hockham: developing radios with father 00:02:31

George Hockham recalls working out the theory behind his father's radio creations.

Frank Land: emigration from Germany in the 1930s with his twin brother 00:05:35

Frank Land talks about immigration to England with his family in 1939, his education and first job at Lyons, and changing his name to Land.

Frank Land: having religion knocked out of you 00:02:44

Frank Land recalls religion in Germany and England during his childhood in the 1930s and 1940s.

Chris Rapley: childhood cultures of space and technology 00:02:55

Chris Rapley remembers childhood interest in space and technology in the 1960s.

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