Researching William Dean

Dean carried out pioneering work in the study of fluid flow at low Reynolds numbers, by applying methods from elasticity theory. Some of his more famous results include solutions for secondary flow in curved tubes, for the perturbation to shear flow near a wall caused by a gap in the wall, and for flow in a corner.

Dean was an undergraduate at Trinity College, Cambridge. He spent five years at Imperial College, and was later a fellow of Trinity College. During the war he undertook mathematical work as part of the Anti-Aircraft Experimental Section of M.I.D. He also held the Goldsmid Chair in Applied Mathematics at University College London (from which he retired in 1964), and a chair at the University of Arizona.

Dean was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler. Along with fellow Yorkshireman Malcolm Walker, he was picked by Somerset for the match against the touring Indian side at the County Ground, Taunton from 28 May 1952. Somerset batted first and reached 193 for eight wickets when Dean batted at No 10, joining all-rounder Johnny Lawrence, who had recommended him to the county. The pair put on 133 for the ninth wicket, only 13 short of the county side's then ninth wicket record, and Lawrence made an unbeaten 103, his first century after six years of county cricket. Dean made 21 before being bowled by Vijay Hazare.

When the Indians batted, Dean opened the bowling, but spin bowlers took the wickets. In Somerset's second innings, Dean came in just before the declaration and was unbeaten without scoring. He again failed to take wickets in India's second innings, bowling four overs for just four runs.

This match proved to be Dean's only taste of first-class cricket. Somerset had scope to offer only one special registration contract, and it went to Walker, whose batting had failed but who had taken three wickets; Dean departed the county and never played first-class cricket again.