Maurice Nelles
Maurice Nelles (October 19, 1906 - August 30, 1998)[1] was an engineer, business executive and professor.[2]
Maurice Nelles  | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 19, 1906 | 
| Died | August 30, 1996 (aged 89) | 
| Nationality | American | 
| Alma mater | University of South Dakota Harvard University  | 
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Lockheed Corporation University of Southern California  | 
Early life and education
    
Nelles was born in Madison, South Dakota. Nelles earned a bachelor's degree in 1927 and a master's degree in 1928, both from the University of South Dakota and earned a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1934.[2][3] While at Harvard, he held the Charles A. Coffin Fellowship and the George H. Emerson and Harvard scholarships.[3]
Career
    
During World War II, Nelles worked at Lockheed Corporation and the War Production Board.[2] While at Lockheed, Nelles and his coworkers Morlan A. Visel and Ernest L. Black proposed a "Pacific Research Foundation" which eventually became SRI International.[4]
After Lockheed, Nelles became a professor of aeronautical engineering at the University of Southern California, where he designed the laboratory ship Velero IV.[2] In 1949 he oversaw Otis Barton's record-breaking 4500 ft deep sea dive off of Santa Cruz Island in a benthoscope that Nelles had designed.[2][5] He would also teach at Pennsylvania State University and the University of Virginia.[2]
He served as the director of research for Borg Warner, Technicolor, Crane, and Westinghouse.[2] He was later a consultant to the National Academy of Sciences.[6]
Nelles died August 30, 1998, in La Jolla, California.[2]
References
    
- "Maurice Nelles". Social Security Death Index. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
 - "Harvard University Obituary and Death Notice Collection - 104". 2011-01-18. Retrieved 2011-12-27.
 - IEEE transactions on engineering management. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. 1954. p. 52.
 - Nielson, Donald (2006). A Heritage of Innovation: SRI's First Half Century. SRI International. pp. F1-4. ISBN 978-0-9745208-1-0.
 - "New Diving Bell May Reach 20,000 Foot Depth - Dr. Nelles" (PDF). The Daily Collegian. 1950-12-09. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-06-03. Retrieved 2011-12-27.
 - "Catalytic converters 'wasteful'". The Deseret News. 1973-07-04. Retrieved 2011-12-28.