Robert Simpson Silver was born in 1913 in Montrose, Scotland, where his family had a laundry business. He went on to study natural philosophy at the University of Glasgow , Scotland, where he received his MA and BSc degrees (1st Class Honors). He then continued his studies by taking a PhD which he completed in 1938 , and a DSc in 1945 . Silver took up a career in industry, but gave it up to teach mechanical engineering, and was installed as the Professor of Mechanical Engineering (James Watt Chair) in 1965 . He was a member of the Institute of Physics and of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Silver was then awarded the UNESCO Prize for science in 1968 and retired in 1979. Robert Simpson Silver died in 1997 .
From the guide to the Papers of Professor Robert Simpson Silver, 1913-1997, engineer, poet and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Glasgow, Scotland, 1920-1979, (Glasgow University Archives Service)
