My personal stories and anecdotes with the late Professor Duncan Dowson (2021)

Professor Duncan Dowson had a major influence on my life, both personal and professional. He supervised my PhD, collaborated with me on setting up the Leeds–Waterloo Student Exchange Program and co-authored academic papers with me. During my PhD studies, he even, indirectly, found me a wife (Judith Dowling) who came from his research group. Duncan always took an interest in my career, my ideas and my life. He was my friend. I have tried, in this short rendition of stories and anecdotes, to convey the essence of my personal interactions with Duncan. I first met Professor Duncan Dowson at the University of Leeds in late September of 1978 having just missed the Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology (that he had invited me to attend). Unfortunately, I was delayed because I had been rushing to complete my MASc thesis at the University of Waterloo. So, the first topics of our meeting were how I had missed the Symposium and how I still had not completed my MASc. Professor Dowson was very nice about this then and also a few months later when the University of Leeds administration ascertained that I really did not have the qualifications to start my PhD. But as a good supervisor, he counteracted the administration and continued in my PhD supervision. Although it was a rocky start, Professor Dowson did convince me regarding how interesting and appropriate it was to spend the next three years investigating the lubrication of normal human ankle joints; that is normal as opposed to arthritic. He thought that the insight gained from a better understanding of healthy natural joint lubrication might help in the design of orthopaedic implants and practices. Then, things got worse again. We went upstairs to the student cafeteria for lunch. I took the opportunity to criticise one of his previous papers on cartilage surface roughness that he had published with Peter Walker. At this stage, I think that Professor Dowson was appalled by my brash ‘colonial’ behaviour but he remained polite. I have often wondered, later on when I started supervising students, how I would have reacted to myself as a student. But I had Professor Dowson as a model for the appropriate behaviour and hopefully would have done the same. I should also mention that Professor Dowson collaborated extensively with Professor Verna Wright who was a rheumatologist and because of this collaboration, he also became my supervisor. I was told to see him next and he wanted to take me ‘on rounds’ to see patients with rheumatoid arthritis. I had to rush back to my ‘flat’ and get a jacket and tie for this more formal occasion. The resulting colour scheme was awful but Professor Wright said ‘Don’t worry, with your accent, no one will notice’. So, this was the start of academic life as a member of Professor Dowson’s research group. After a few months, Professor Dowson had me write a formal report on my literature review before going back to Canada for Christmas. Fortunately, he thought that the resulting report was acceptable but may well have had some doubts about taking on a crazy Canadian, even if I did have a scholarship and was essentially free, except, of course by taking up his time. I returned in January and research proceeded. I went back to Canada for the summer (personal reasons) and Professor Dowson had to intervene again with various levels of administration to get my scholarship temporarily suspended. I managed to complete my MASc that summer (1979) and continued my PhD as a now ‘qualified’ post-graduate student under Professor Dowson’s supervision. Being in Leeds was very exciting (Figure 1). Leeds, Yorkshire circa 1980. Photograph courtesy of Judith Dowling The other post-graduate students used to call Professor Dowson ‘Prof’ (or DD when he was not present). So, I started calling him ‘Prof’ at research presentations and in other meetings. (Years later, when I became more of a colleague and started calling him ‘Duncan’ I kept thinking of him as ‘Prof’.) For the next year or so, I did not have much interaction with Professor Dowson and he let me follow my own course in my PhD. Then, it came to the last 10 months and suddenly (as it seemed to me) he became very interested and outlined a couple years of research (again as it seemed to me) that needed to be done before my PhD was complete. I almost quit but then I started doing some of the approaches and saw that they made sense. Professor Dowson became very interested and supportive of my accelerated efforts. In the end, my PhD thesis was long (too long) and rushed and it was a miracle (to me and probably to Professor Dowson) that it got finished before I flew back to Canada in November 1981. Very much to his credit, ‘Prof’ had never given up on me and one Friday evening, he stayed up most of the night editing one of my last thesis chapter, so he could deliver it to me in the lab on the next Saturday morning. The thesis abstract was finalised (the last thing done) and I submitted my thesis with much help from Marguerite Hall (one of Professor Dowson’s administration assistants) who did the typing. In those days, we used typewriters not computers for word processing. This was all completed a day or so before the end of my scholarship and flying back to Canada with my new wife (Judith Dowling, a postdoc from Professor Dowson’s research group but that is another story). I guess that much to his relief, I did not see Professor Dowson until February 1982, when I defended my thesis. As I waited in an outer office to find out if I had passed, Professor Dowson and Professor Gordon Higginson (my external examiner) were discussing train schedules from Leeds back to Durham. But it was OK, I had passed. Then, I had Professor Dowson quickly dictated a letter ‘To Whom It May Concern’ saying that I had passed, so that the University of Waterloo would continue to employ me. This was the story of Professor Dowson supervising my PhD. Perhaps, it is not the whole story but it covers the main points. I hesitate to think what Professor Dowson got out of it, but I got a PhD, a wife and a faculty position at the University of Waterloo. So, I guess Professor Dowson would have at least known that he had significantly influenced my life. Gradually, we published my PhD papers and Professor Dowson looked over the manuscripts but made few editorial suggestions. I was surprised but soon learnt that I was the main one responsible for how the research was presented. This was one last ‘supervisory’ lesson. Then, in April 1983, I attended a NASA conference on tribology in Cleveland, Ohio. Professor Dowson was there and towards the end, he sought me out and said ‘We should talk’. This was followed by me doing presentations at the University of Leeds and collaboration with Professor Dowson in setting up the Leeds–Waterloo Student Exchange Program in 1986 (a very successful program mostly involving undergraduate students at our two institutions). Then, we had Professor Dowson as a keynote speaker at a tribology symposium in Sarnia, Ontario (May 1987). Next, I was sponsored by Professor Dowson for a Sabbatical at the University of Leeds (1988–1989). At the end of my Sabbatical, I attended the Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology in Lyon and besides research presentations, it involved touring the countryside (Figure 2). On the way back to Leeds, a number of us, that is research group members, stopped off in Paris and toured the cultural icons of Paris with Duncan and his wife, Mabel. At first, Duncan was the guide and map-reader but then he delegated this task to me for a while. I had become a colleague and a friend. French countryside viewed when attending the 16th Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology in September 1989. (Cath Goulbourn, Sheila Moore, Mabel Dowson, Zhongmin Jin, John Medley and Duncan Dowson) Photograph courtesy of Jian Yao The Leeds–Lyon Symposia on Tribology were developed by Professor Dowson and Professor Godet, usually held one year in Leeds, UK, and the next year in Lyon, France, with each locale trying to outdo the other in terms of delegate tours. From 1976 to 2019, there were 48 of these symposia and I attended 13 of them. At these events, Duncan always insisted upon calling me ‘Professor’ before I actually was a full professor because ‘in America everyone is a professor’. Duncan was an imposing presence (Figure 3) but was always friendly towards my students, my family and my other associates. For example, right after attending the 1989 Leeds–Lyon Symposium, one of my MASc students (Dan Auger) felt compelled to complete his thesis in a hurry and started his PhD at the University of Leeds (fully qualified, unlike me) under the supervision of Professor Dowson (and Dr. John Fisher). Professor Dowson at the podium during the 24th Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology held September 1997 at Imperial College in London, UK. Photograph courtesy of John Haojiang Yuan (a PhD student under my supervision at that time) In July 1994, Duncan was invited to present at the prestigious Gordon Conference in New Hampshire, USA. I applied to attend because for Gordon Conferences, you had to be invited to present and apply to be allowed to attend. While there, Duncan and I discussed the lubrication of metal-on-metal hip implants. This was, perhaps, the start of his intense interest in this topic that spanned the next 20 years or so. In June 2001, Duncan was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Waterloo (Figure 4). There was a formal luncheon with the President of the University of Waterloo, David Johnson, who later became the Governor General of Canada. Duncan told a terrible joke to start his convocation address about train ticket shenanigans by passengers on British Rail that both shocked and relaxed the audience. I think this was Duncan’s last trip to North America (some health issues arose regarding air travel) but on this trip, he went on with Mabel to tour the Rocky Mountains by rail before returning to Leeds. At the University of Waterloo Convocation in June 2001 where Professor Dowson was awarded an honorary doctorate. (John Medley, Judith Dowling, Duncan Dowson all in academic robes) I continued meeting Duncan at various Leeds–Lyon Symposia, other conferences and various academic activities. For example, in 2002, we met at an IMechE conference in London entitled ‘Engineers & Surgeons–Joined at the Hip’ and discussed hip-wear simulator protocols. I attended the 2008 Leeds–Lyon Symposium in his honour entitled ‘Duncan Dowson at 80’. We met again in 2011, at the first International Conference on Biotribology at Imperial College in London. At that time, I was working with plaintiff lawyers on issues with metal-on-metal hip implants and had encouraged two American lawyers to attend. Duncan talked extensively with them and they were most impressed by his friendly attention and his genuine interest in their perspective. In September 2012, I attended the Leeds–Lyon Symposium and we (me, Judith, Duncan and Mabel) went out to dinner at a pub, north of Leeds. Then, later on in December 2012, I was in Leeds as an external examiner and spent time with Duncan and Mabel including a visit to his second house in a village in North Yorkshire. By this time, I was busy with my own upcoming retirement and much legal consulting activity. So, this was the last time that I talked with Duncan. We discussed natural joint lubrication extensively. He told me about how chemical engineers had solved similar problems to synovial fluid flows and their models might be applicable. He said ‘You still have time to solve this problem’. This was my PhD topic and sadly I still have not solved it, but maybe I do have time. After all these years, Professor Dowson was supervising and encouraging me. So, I last spoke with Duncan in late December 2012, but it is a vivid memory, and seems like yesterday. Personal stories and anecdotes on my visiting stay at University of Leeds and subsequent intercommunication on biotribology are briefly described. During this stay at the University of Leeds, some experiences are described including both a simulator testing and a retrieval study of knee prostheses. My subsequent interactions with Professor Dowson included mutual visits and discussions at Leeds–Lyon Symposiums. From September 1981 to July 1982, I was a Visiting Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, UK. My research area at Kyushu University was tribology, and I collaborated with the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery on lubrication mechanism in natural synovial joints and optimum design of artificial joints. As a result, I was offered the opportunity to perform research at Professor Dowson’s Laboratory. This was my first overseas travel. After attending the eighth Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology held at INSA de Lyon in France, I moved to Leeds and joined Prof. Dowson’s Laboratory in the Department of Mechanical Engineering (Figure 5). At the first meeting on my research plan, Prof. Dowson expressed an interest in a previous paper [1] by Prof. Hirano and me on the instability of elastohydrodynamic film in reciprocating motion with a short Although this paper discussed the fluid film instability in reciprocating it had some in with fluid film in natural synovial joints. Photograph at the Department of Mechanical University of Leeds in September 1981. Dowson on from right in the the on from in the back My research at University of Leeds was of knee joints in a knee joint (Figure were to the and and to the of the and to the of the to and and of Leeds were in the simulator the at levels to the of in surface of the were by simulator was to the testing to The in to after joint simulator testing for Leeds joint simulator for and Leeds of a In a with (Figure it was that were on terms as the of and at the By before and after it was to and and to The in the was but the to was held up because the of both did not in this knee study on various knee that the of to from to on the of the and For the Leeds knee with a that was to that of a natural it was found that the at the area to an with In the of my I collaborated with Dr. at and at to a retrieval study of the knee that were of a and a In the knee the applied and they were and It was that the influence of the of the on and was of a surface and the model (Figure The that was by or to the or during both of could and of surface in area in of on reciprocating During my stay at the University of Leeds, I had the opportunity to attend the one day course on and of held on April I was impressed by Professor John where he that a as as two of and on The was very much that of It was that testing motion the motion in human and a might have these At that time in 1982, in on reciprocating not motion but reciprocating was as the in the full of a As a was it was that all should be in a joint simulator before used in in My with knee joint simulator testing and my research to various joint and for optimum design of joint prostheses. At as meeting and at the University of Leeds, I learnt more about and experiences during my stay at the University of Leeds me the opportunity to in I that these experiences to of the for at Kyushu University that included the for and in the in 2002, the of in and the for in I had no opportunity to visit Leeds for years after back to in 1982, but I Leeds in 1986 to attend the Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology on (Figure At the Biotribology I our research paper on an a of fluid film in knee during motion in a knee joint simulator In this papers were on elastohydrodynamic lubrication models for synovial joints and and in synovial joints Dowson and This was the for in the of Leeds–Lyon Symposium in Leeds in at with Prof. Dowson at After I had to the in mutual with Prof. Dowson at at various Leeds–Lyon on during the research and at or tribology For example, after attending held in in June I the University of Leeds and discussed research with Prof. Dowson (Figure My visiting to University of Leeds in 1989 In July with the of Dr. and Dr. Prof. Dowson supervised their PhD, we were to Prof. Dowson to as a speaker at the of Mechanical Conference and meetings. The topics of his were and the he Kyushu University in with Dowson (Figure Prof. and Dowson in in 1997 At the Leeds–Lyon Symposium in Leeds in (Figure I was to a on lubrication in natural synovial joints. I talked about of in During the in this Prof. Dowson about the and of for and In a after the he the of cartilage motion at end for because cartilage would always be if a fluid film of was cartilage we discussed the of the of fluid the mutual fluid and the of the behaviour of surface the of in the surface and so He had an intense interest in the lubrication in natural synovial joints. This was my last with Prof. Prof. Dowson at of the Leeds–Lyon Symposium on Tribology in Leeds, September I would like to my for his and on Biotribology over years in this first for the late Professor Duncan I in Leeds to on my PhD with Professor Duncan Dowson in November This was after my undergraduate study at University and my from International My first of him was that he was a and who spoke and first meeting was about a research I that he me a of research spanned from to synovial joints. before my trip to Leeds, I had Professor Dowson’s research and that one of his research was synovial joints. I had done some on this I also went to a to see a human hip I had no to of as my PhD study After this the first thing I did was to Professor John PhD thesis on The of I was that Professor Medley had all the on the and of the human ankle joint with the lubrication and John had that a film was developed during the was by and the film was much the roughness of the one of the lubrication in synovial joints was fluid So, my task was could this We then had to roughness was to do with the model and under the we were in that the roughness almost was and an was to be even for roughness as as the film we the model for the roughness and also the and motion the was almost the same. a film was to the that would the roughness in much the way as the lubrication model of This was of a topic at the time had attention in as and For problems as in and synovial the was much more We were both very about these and submitted our first on this topic to was soon returned no appropriate could be first paper was then submitted to Engineering in it became an IMechE and in 1986 After the first of exciting we were both to We had was not at the time Professor Dowson was busy as the of the Leeds University and also had research often became or even On various we had to working and one in was on I also how much he had with my PhD both and I submitted a of and his was so that his were actually more the I had I also learnt as and to to the of our synovial joints. I have supervised more PhD and students and time when I find it to or on their I always myself how much I have from Professor Dowson’s supervision. After my PhD studies, I started working as a research with Professor Dowson and Professor John This was for three years and then it was followed by another three years, and it the of artificial joints that would fluid film We had and knee implants and hip implants and as It is to see that this attention and one design is in During this we published papers in I was also to have the opportunity to with PhD students and other as This me academic for my In I moved to University to take up the position of a I started my own research group and continued my regarding lubrication of artificial joints. My first PhD developed an model of a model for artificial hip joints. After he was to some full I was to see that the full well with the on the developed in I was also that John Medley came all the way from Canada to his thesis. with the help from Professor we developed to the to we were to see that the was under and with a few was under we have the for lubrication problems in artificial joints and as and lubrication After Professor Dowson’s retirement in September we continued our research He often University and we discussed various research This continued after I returned to the Leeds University to take up the position of a professor in I moved back to in and then in I the position of of the University During this time, I often Leeds and had met with Professor Dowson I he had some problems with his hip and I was in Leeds the in January for a short trip but did not see him in I was shocked when I that Professor Duncan Dowson on January I was so to him at the time and so I have been to have first been a PhD student of Professor Dowson and then an academic colleague of his for we have published It is interesting to his I the of on February the of Dowson Leeds a from to of were and of course this is the number of his is as it is interesting to that I had to came to (Figure The number of with from of of Dowson Leeds on February I have learnt so much from Professor This how to write students, and He was not just to but also to students with the students from other He was supportive of the of tribology in with the of two and Professor for the of the two tribology and and Biotribology I will always Professor Dowson as and of him are his for of and and of will with me