Rudranath Capildeo
Encyclopedia
Dr. Rudranath Capildeo was a Trinidad and Tobago
politician
and mathematician
. He was the Leader of the Democratic Labour Party
from 1960–1969 and Leader of the Opposition
in Parliament
from 1961–1963, succeeding Ashford Sinanan
. He was also a faculty member at the University of London
, eventually holding the position of Reader
of Mathematics. He was also the younger brother of Simbhoonath Capildeo
and uncle of Nobel Prize
-winning author V.S. Naipaul
and of Shiva Naipaul
. He married Ruth Goodchild in 1944 and they had one son named Rudy. He was awarded the Trinity Cross
(the nation's highest award) in 1969.
Capildeo was born in Chaguanas
, Trinidad
, the youngest child of the prominent Capildeo family. He was educated at Queen's Royal College
in Port of Spain
where he won an island scholarship
in 1938. He attended the University of London
, where he obtained his BSc
in Mathematics
and Physics
in 1943, his MSc
in Mathematics in 1945, and his PhD
in Mathematical Physics
in 1948, thesis title: The flexure problem in elasticity.
Capildeo held lectureships at the University of London
, including at both University College London
and at Westfield College
. He also taught briefly at Queen's Royal College (1945) and was Principal of the Polytechnic Institute in Port of Spain in 1959.
While Capildeo was a man of undoubted intelligence, his entry into politics in the late 1950s was because the political figures who entered the DLP in 1957 did not trust each other, and could only agree on him. Though he left Trinidad in 1939 to study medicine, Rudranath Capildeo changed his course of study, focusing on applied mathematics and physics. He was committed to understanding the nature of space and time and this sparked his interest in understanding Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity. This work led to several new theories, which had practical implications in aerodynamics and space. They included “The Flexure Problem in Elasticity” (Ph.D. thesis) and his study on the “Theory of Rotation and Gravity” named Capildeo’s Theory, which had applications in early outer space expeditions in the 1960s and 1970s.(Niherst Profiles)
His political career was unusual, since he was active only during election campaigns (in 1961 and 1967) and during the summer months. His conduct of the last pre-independence electoral campaign, in 1961, was also unusual, beginning with his declaration that because he understood Einstein
he could "compress the time" necessary to undo what the sitting government had done. Not only did Capildeo produce many significant mathematical theories and a book on Vector Algebra and Mechanics in 1967, he also studied law in London in 1956. Two years later he was admitted to practice as a Barrister-at-Law in Trinidad. He founded and led the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in 1960, and became Leader of the Opposition in the Trinidad & Tobago Parliament (1960-1967). With Dr. Eric Williams as Prime Minister, both men laid the foundation for an independent Trinidad and Tobago (Niherst Profiles). Dr Capildeo was also responsible for having the freedom of worship included in the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago and Service Commissions (because he felt that service commissions would ensure equality and fairness in the appointment of people to public offices).
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
. He was the Leader of the Democratic Labour Party
Democratic Labour Party (Trinidad and Tobago)
The Democratic Labour Party was the main opposition party in Trinidad and Tobago between 1957 and 1971. The party was the party which opposed the People's National Movement at the time of Independence...
from 1960–1969 and Leader of the Opposition
Opposition (parliamentary)
Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. Note that this article uses the term government as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning the administration or the cabinet rather than the state...
in Parliament
Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago
The Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago is the legislative branch of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. The Parliament is bicameral. It consists of the elected House of Representatives, which has 43 members elected for a five year term in single-seat constituencies, and the Senate which has 31...
from 1961–1963, succeeding Ashford Sinanan
Ashford Sinanan
Notable public servant of Trinidad and Tobago who served in various roles prior to and following Trinidad’s independence in 1962. Along with brother, Mitra, Sinanan helped draft portions of Trinidad’s constitution and later went on to serve as the country’s first High Commissioner to India...
. He was also a faculty member at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, eventually holding the position of 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...
of Mathematics. He was also the younger brother of Simbhoonath Capildeo
Simbhoonath Capildeo
Simbhoonath Capildeo was a Trinidad and Tobago prominent Hindu politician and lawyer, born in Chaguanas. He was the elder brother of Rudranath Capildeo and uncle of Sir Vidia Naipaul and Shiva Naipaul...
and uncle of Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
-winning author V.S. Naipaul
V. S. Naipaul
Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad "V. S." Naipaul, TC is a Nobel prize-winning Indo-Trinidadian-British writer who is known for his novels focusing on the legacy of the British Empire's colonialism...
and of Shiva Naipaul
Shiva Naipaul
Shiva Naipaul , born Shivadhar Srivinasa Naipaul in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, was a Trinidadian and British novelist and journalist.Shiva Naipaul was the younger brother of novelist V. S. Naipaul...
. He married Ruth Goodchild in 1944 and they had one son named Rudy. He was awarded the Trinity Cross
Trinity Cross
The Trinity Cross was the highest of the National Awards of Trinidad and Tobago, between the years 1969– 2008. It was awarded for: distinguished and outstanding service to Trinidad and Tobago...
(the nation's highest award) in 1969.
Capildeo was born in Chaguanas
Chaguanas
The Borough of Chaguanas is the largest municipality 2000 census) and fastest-growing town in Trinidad and Tobago. Located in Central Trinidad about south of Port of Spain. It grew in size due to its proximity to the Woodford Lodge sugar refinery. It remained a minor town until the 1980s when it...
, Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, the youngest child of the prominent Capildeo family. He was educated at Queen's Royal College
Queen's Royal College
Still regarded as the bastion of secondary school education Queen's Royal College is the oldest secondary school in Trinidad and Tobago, referred to for short as "QRC", or "The College" by past alumni...
in Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
where he won an island scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
in 1938. He attended the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, where he obtained his BSc
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
and Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
in 1943, his MSc
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
in Mathematics in 1945, and his PhD
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in Mathematical Physics
Mathematical physics
Mathematical physics refers to development of mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The Journal of Mathematical Physics defines this area as: "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the development of mathematical methods suitable for such applications and...
in 1948, thesis title: The flexure problem in elasticity.
Capildeo held lectureships at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, including at both University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
and at Westfield College
Westfield College
Westfield College was a small college situated in Kidderpore Avenue, Hampstead, London, and was a constituent college of the University of London from 1882 to 1989. The college originally admitted only women as students and became coeducational in 1964. In 1989, Westfield College merged with Queen...
. He also taught briefly at Queen's Royal College (1945) and was Principal of the Polytechnic Institute in Port of Spain in 1959.
While Capildeo was a man of undoubted intelligence, his entry into politics in the late 1950s was because the political figures who entered the DLP in 1957 did not trust each other, and could only agree on him. Though he left Trinidad in 1939 to study medicine, Rudranath Capildeo changed his course of study, focusing on applied mathematics and physics. He was committed to understanding the nature of space and time and this sparked his interest in understanding Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity. This work led to several new theories, which had practical implications in aerodynamics and space. They included “The Flexure Problem in Elasticity” (Ph.D. thesis) and his study on the “Theory of Rotation and Gravity” named Capildeo’s Theory, which had applications in early outer space expeditions in the 1960s and 1970s.(Niherst Profiles)
His political career was unusual, since he was active only during election campaigns (in 1961 and 1967) and during the summer months. His conduct of the last pre-independence electoral campaign, in 1961, was also unusual, beginning with his declaration that because he understood Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
he could "compress the time" necessary to undo what the sitting government had done. Not only did Capildeo produce many significant mathematical theories and a book on Vector Algebra and Mechanics in 1967, he also studied law in London in 1956. Two years later he was admitted to practice as a Barrister-at-Law in Trinidad. He founded and led the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in 1960, and became Leader of the Opposition in the Trinidad & Tobago Parliament (1960-1967). With Dr. Eric Williams as Prime Minister, both men laid the foundation for an independent Trinidad and Tobago (Niherst Profiles). Dr Capildeo was also responsible for having the freedom of worship included in the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago and Service Commissions (because he felt that service commissions would ensure equality and fairness in the appointment of people to public offices).