Clive Forster Cooper
Encyclopedia
Sir
Clive Forster Cooper, FRS (3 April 1880 - 23 August 1947) was an English
paleontologist. He was the first to describe Paraceratherium
, the largest known land mammal
.
, Oxford
, Rugby School
. In 1897 he went up to Trinity College, Cambridge
, where he gained his BA in 1901 and his MA in 1904.
and Laccadive Islands
. From 1902 to 1903 he was naturalist to the North Seas Fisheries Commission Scientific Investigations, before joining expeditions to the Seychelles
, Fayum and Baluchistan. In 1914, he was appointed Director of Cambridge's University Museum of Zoology, remaining there until 1937. During the First World War, he was busy with government war research on malaria
. At Cambridge, he was also Reader
in the Vertebrata and a Fellow
of Trinity Hall
.
Forster-Cooper was Director of the Natural History Museum
in London
from 1938 to 1947.
, Maryland
, USA, and they had two sons and one daughter.
He was knight
ed in 1946 and died on 23 August 1947.
Sir
Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
Clive Forster Cooper, FRS (3 April 1880 - 23 August 1947) was an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
paleontologist. He was the first to describe Paraceratherium
Paraceratherium
Paraceratherium, also commonly known as Indricotherium or Baluchitherium , is an extinct genus of gigantic hornless rhinoceros-like mammals of the family Hyracodontidae, endemic to Eurasia and Asia during the Eocene to Oligocene 37.2—23.030 Mya, existing for approximately...
, the largest known land mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
.
Early life
He was born in London, the son of John Forster Cooper and Mary Emily Miley, and educated at Summer Fields SchoolSummer Fields School
Summer Fields is a boys' independent preparatory school based in Summertown, Oxford, England.-History:Originally called Summerfield, it became a Boys' Preparatory School in 1864 with seven pupils. Its owner, Archibald Maclaren, was a fencing teacher who ran a gymnasium in Oxford; he himself was...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Rugby School
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
. In 1897 he went up to Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, where he gained his BA in 1901 and his MA in 1904.
Career
Forster Cooper was a member of expeditions in 1900 to the MaldiveMaldives
The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...
and Laccadive Islands
Lakshadweep
Lakshadweep , formerly known as the Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi Islands, is a group of islands in the Laccadive Sea, 200 to 440 km off the coast of the South West Indian state of Kerala...
. From 1902 to 1903 he was naturalist to the North Seas Fisheries Commission Scientific Investigations, before joining expeditions to the Seychelles
Seychelles
Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
, Fayum and Baluchistan. In 1914, he was appointed Director of Cambridge's University Museum of Zoology, remaining there until 1937. During the First World War, he was busy with government war research on malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. At Cambridge, he was also Reader
Reader (academic rank)
The title of Reader in the United Kingdom and some universities in the Commonwealth nations like Australia and New Zealand denotes an appointment for a senior academic with a distinguished international reputation in research or scholarship...
in the Vertebrata and a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of Trinity Hall
Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the fifth-oldest college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by William Bateman, Bishop of Norwich.- Foundation :...
.
Forster-Cooper was Director of the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from 1938 to 1947.
Private life
In 1912, Forster Cooper married Rosalie, a daughter of R. Tunstall-Smith, of BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, USA, and they had two sons and one daughter.
He was knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
ed in 1946 and died on 23 August 1947.