Drummond Hoyle Matthews. 5 February 1931 — 20 July 1997

Abstract

Drummond (Drum) Matthews was a leader who gave himself selflessly for the good of his students and science. He is best known for his work with Fred Vine (F.R.S. 1974), then his graduate student, on the seafloor spreading hypothesis, which underpinned the plate tectonics revolution, and for the work done under his leadership by the Cambridge marine geophysics group and the British Institutions' Reflection Profiling Syndicate (BIRPS). But perhaps his most enduring scientific legacy lies in his many former students, now in positions of leadership and responsibility around the world, who continue to make significant contributions to the health of science.