LEWIS FRY RICHARDSON AND HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO MATHEMATICS, METEOROLOGY, AND MODELS OF CONFLICT

The life and major scientific contributions of Lewis Fry Richardson (1881–1953) are reviewed, with particular emphasis on his pioneering work in numerical analysis, meteorology, and numerical weather prediction. His later work on mathematical modeling of psychology, causes of conflict, and the statistics of wars is outlined in terms understandable to fluid dynamicists. It is included because it led to Richardson's discovery of one aspect of fractals, an analytical technique now recognized as valuable in the study of complex fluid motions.