Ranking Rankine: W. J. M. Rankine (1820–72) and the Making of ‘Engineering Science’ Revisited

Abstract

In this paper my focus is William John Macquom Rankine (1820-72). He has been variously studied: as an advocate of academic engineering;1 as a 'co-founder' of thermodynamics;2 even as author and performer, in meetings of British Association Lions, of comedic songs like 'The mathematician in love or 'The enginedriver to his engine with his own piano accompaniment, The iron horse.3 Rather than engage in celebration, I want here to consider Rankine's reputation, as man of science, and academic, and to think about his role in 'engineering science'. What did Rankine's contemporaries think of him as a man of science, as an and as an academic figure allegedly bridging science and engineering - bringing theory and practice into harmony as he famously put it?4 What was substance of Rankine's programme to provide an institutional context for the science of engineer in Britain, and especially in Scodand, and most especially in Glasgow? Was it case, as one might expect, that strong reputations in science, engineering and academia, amongst established communities of scientific, engineering and academic practitioners, facilitated Rankine's promotion of 'engineering science' as a useful collaborative venture? If not - if reputations were not so strong, for example - how did 'engineering science' get off ground in Glasgow and what did 'engineering science' actually mean in Glasgow?I begin this paper by reviewing limited historiography and existing views associated with Rankine. I suggest that an assumed trajectory from engineer, to man of science, to educator needs to be questioned. After noting some standard views of Rankine as 'Scot', civil engineer, and man of science I propose that Rankine's canonization as a prophet of engineering science in Glasgow immediately after his death, coupled with loss of his personal manuscripts, has led contemporaries and subsequent scholars to accept what is essentially a teleological view of Rankine's career. Although there is ample evidence that Rankine, as an individual, was goaldirected, he expressed different and at times conflicting goals; and I cast doubt on presumption that double competence in science and engineering supported establishment of that bridging discipline of engineering science. Rather, there is evidence to support view that scientific and engineering communities, or their temporary representatives, repeatedly assessed Rankine as a 'marginal' figure.5 His reputation as man of science, for example, was if anything higher amongst engineers even if it was not always valued by them; and his competence as a practical, rather than philosophical, seems to have been as readily granted by scientific leaders as it was by engineering professionals. Judgments implying such marginality were often, although not always, privately made and they rested upon diverse and subtle matters, including alleged philosophical affectation, problematic use of language, pushy publication agendas, challenging methodological proposals, and a presentation of self that was as often combative as it was quirky. Rankine's eventual, considerable, but highly contingent success within a particular foundational academic niche that he did much to construct and to extend, was, when it eventually came, still accompanied by actions judged by contemporaries if not as inappropriate then certainly far from 'easy', culturally or intellectually, and not always palatable to target communities, like working man. Nevertheless, as I indicate towards end of paper, in Glasgow Rankine did assemble a power base from which a local practice of 'engineering science', considered as literary and pedagogic practice, might be propagated.These questions and provisional answers to them have grown out of work to construct an extended biography of Rankine.6 The task has not before been achieved. Rankine published much in engineering and scientific journals; but most of his personal papers are currently lost and few have been used by biographers hitherto. …