Edith Jones Woodward

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Edith Jones Woodward
Edith Jones Woodward, from a 1964 newspaper photo.
Born
Edith Jones

August 15, 1914
Waldron, Indiana
DiedJanuary 21, 2002
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)astronomer, educator

Edith Jones Woodward (August 15, 1914 – January 21, 2002) was an American astronomer and college professor. She did research on binary stars, and taught at William Paterson College in New Jersey for over twenty years.

Early life[edit]

Edith Jones was born in Waldron, Indiana,[1] the daughter of James Raymond Jones and Mary "Madge" Yeager Jones. She attended Purdue University, earning a bachelor's of science in 1935. She won the Flora Roberts Medal as "outstanding senior woman" in her class at Purdue.[2][3] She earned a PhD in astronomy from Harvard University in 1941, where she held a Pickering Fellowship in 1936[4] and worked with Harlow Shapley and Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin.[5][1]

Career[edit]

Edith Jones Woodward taught astronomy, mathematics, and geology for more than 40 years, at Mount Holyoke College (1938 to 1940), Hunter College (1951 to 1952), and as a professor at William Paterson College (1959 to 1983).[2] She also taught math to high school students, from 1956 to 1959,[6] and astronomy at National Science Foundations summer programs for teachers in 1961,[7] and for selected high school students in 1964.[8] Based on her teaching experience, she published a textbook, Elementary Concepts of Sets (1959), and addressed the 1960 meeting of the Science-Mathematics Society of New Jersey.[9]

She attended the American Astronomical Society meeting in 1974, in Gainesville, Florida.[10] From 1973 to 1975, she held a grant from the National Science Foundation for research at Kitt Peak National Observatory. During that work, she also traveled to Chile three times for NASA, to visit Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. In 1980 she won a NASA grant to fund work at the Harvard College Observatory on projects involving eclipses of binary stars.[11]

Woodward was active for many years in the League of Women Voters and the American Association of University Women.[12] In 1972, she was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.[13][14] She was also a serious bridge player, and the first woman to win the President's Trophy in a bridge tournament at the Harvard Club of New York.[15]

Publications[edit]

Woodward's scientific publications included "A study of four W Ursae Majoris stars" (Harvard College Observatory Circular 1942),[16] "A photometric analysis of the supergiant close binary V453 Scorpii" (Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 1975, with Robert H. Koch),[17] "AK Herculis — An atypical W UMa-type system" (Astrophysics and Space Science 1977, with R. E. Wilson),[18] "U, B, V light curves of CO Lacertae" (Astrophysics and Space Science 1983, with R. E. Wilson),[19] "Old and new observations of V523 Saggitarii" (Astronomical Journal 1989, with Robert H. Koch),[20] and "Analyses of photoelectric light curves of YY Sagittarii" (Astronomical Journal 1992, with Robert H. Koch).[21]

Personal life[edit]

Edith Jones married William Redin Woodward, a patent attorney, in 1940. They had three children, James, Barbara, and Paul. Edith J. Woodward died in 2002, aged 87 years. Her elder son James F. Woodward became a historian of science and an adjunct physics professor at California State University, Fullerton. Her younger son Paul R. Woodward became a mathematician and astrophysicist who taught at the University of Minnesota.[22][23] The American Astronomical Society presents an Edith J. Woodward Award, named in her memory.[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Waldron Pupil is Honored for Study". Rushville Republican. May 23, 1936. p. 3. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b "Mother of Three State College Prof". The Herald-News. September 11, 1959. p. 2. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Purdue Reamer Club (2012). A University of Tradition: The Spirit of Purdue. Purdue University Press. p. 200. ISBN 9781557536303.
  4. ^ Cannon, Annie J. (1936). "Report of the Astronomical Fellowship Committee". Annual Report of the Maria Mitchell Association. 34: 14–16. Bibcode:1936MMAAR..34...14C.
  5. ^ "Astronomy Alumni". Astronomy Department, Harvard University. Retrieved 2019-06-10.
  6. ^ "Warren Township". The Courier-News. September 20, 1967. p. 3. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Dr. Woodward Chosen to Teach at University". The News. April 15, 1961. p. 10. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Smaridge, Regina (July 15, 1964). "Star Gazing/Teen-Agers Study Science". The Morning Call. p. 8. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Teachers to Hear Talk on Astronomy". The Herald-News. May 17, 1960. p. 35. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Edith Jones Woodward at the American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting". John Irwin Slide Collection. 2014-02-24. Retrieved 2019-06-09.
  11. ^ "WPC Professor Receives NASA Grant". Shopper News. May 7, 1980. p. 26. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "AAUW to Hear Talk on Astronomy Thursday". The News. March 16, 1963. p. 4. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Maravel, Harry (July 28, 1972). "Majority Backs Eagleton". The Herald-News. p. 17. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "The Area Delegates". The Record. July 9, 1972. p. 102. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Dr. Woodward Gets NASA Grant". The Record. May 15, 1980. p. 24. Retrieved June 10, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Woodward, Edith Jones (1942). "A study of four W Ursae Majoris stars". Harvard College Observatory Circular. 446: 1–33. Bibcode:1942HarCi.446....1W.
  17. ^ Woodward, Edith J.; Koch, Robert H. (1975). "A photometric analysis of the supergiant close binary V453 Scorpii". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 87 (520): 901–907. Bibcode:1975PASP...87..901W. doi:10.1086/129868. ISSN 0004-6280. JSTOR 40675828.
  18. ^ Woodward, E. J.; Wilson, R. E. (1977-12-01). "AK Herculis — An atypical W UMa-type system". Astrophysics and Space Science. 52 (2): 387–414. Bibcode:1977Ap&SS..52..387W. doi:10.1007/BF01093875. ISSN 1572-946X. S2CID 122268412.
  19. ^ Wilson, R. E.; Woodward, E. J. (1983). "U, B, V light curves of CO Lacertae". Astrophysics and Space Science. 89 (1): 5–14. Bibcode:1983Ap&SS..89....5W. doi:10.1007/BF01008381. ISSN 0004-640X. S2CID 123161898.
  20. ^ Woodward, Edith Jones; Koch, Robert H. (March 1989). "Old and new observations of V523 Saggitarii". Astronomical Journal. 97: 842–847. Bibcode:1989AJ.....97..842W. doi:10.1086/115030.
  21. ^ Woodward, Edith J.; Koch, Robert H. (July 1992). "Analyses of photoelectric light curves of YY Sagittarii". The Astronomical Journal. 104: 796. Bibcode:1992AJ....104..796W. doi:10.1086/116274.
  22. ^ "Laboratory for Computational Science and Engineering". University of Minnesota. Retrieved 2019-06-10.
  23. ^ "Paul R. Woodward". International Astronomical Union. Retrieved 2019-06-10.
  24. ^ Lacy, Claud H. Sandberg (February 1998). "Absolute Dimensions and Masses of V541 Cygni and the General Theory of Relativity". The Astronomical Journal. 115 (2): 808. Bibcode:1998AJ....115..801L. doi:10.1086/300216.
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