Harold Somers Mickley

HAROLD SOMERS MICKLEY of Sarasota FL, previously of Westport CT, died on December 3, 2011 at the age of 93. He was the father of Dr. Steven Mickley of Greenwich, CT. Harold was a man with prodigious abilities, personal and professional, that he assiduously applied to the benefit of others. Born in Seneca Falls, New York, on October 14, 1918, to Marguerite and Harold MIckley, he was a child prodigy who taught himself calculus in the fifth grade and graduated from high school at age 14. He then entered the California Institute of Technology, where his advisor was Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling, a man Harold highly respected for his quick and inquiring mind-- attributes that characterized his student as well. After receiving his BS and MS at Cal Tech, Harold went on to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received his PhD in chemical engineering and was asked to join the faculty. He eventually became Chairman of the Faculty in 1963, as well as Ford Professor of Engineering. At MIT his brainchild was the creation of the Center for Advanced Engineering Studies, which became the prototypic post graduate continuing education program for skilled engineers in the working world to return and learn the latest advances in engineering. One of his great strengths was his command of the advanced mathematics required to analyze complex chemical systems. As a result, he was the lead author of the textbook Applied Mathematics in Chemical Engineering, written more than 50 years ago, but still used today in engineering programs around the world. Harold received numerous offers for university presidency positions and to be scientific advisor to the President of the United States; but rather than uproot his family, he chose to remain close to home, look for new challenges, and apply his chemical engineering skills to industry. He opted to become Vice Chairman of Stauffer Chemical Company, headquartered in Westport CT until his retirement. He received numerous awards, including from the American Chemical Society, as well as Distinguished Alumni awards from both MIT and Cal Tech-the highest awards that can be bestowed by the universities. But he valued just as highly the accolades for his teaching abilities that he received from his students. As a student who subsequently became an MIT professor himself once wrote to Harold, "I soon decided that I did not yet wish to leave MIT because there was so much I could learn from you; and that few things could be more rewarding than doctoral research under your supervisionIn all, you set for us a model as someone who thought deeply and worked hard for the benefit of others." A Stauffer board member wrote at Harold's retirement "In any person's career there are individuals who serve as role models. I have had a number of them, but I doubt that I will ever have one more influential and more difficult to emulate than you. You have made me realize how penetrating and exhaustive my questioning of facts can and should be---and you have never failed to make me aware of your concern for people down the line." In the world of science, he was internationally known as an expert in fluid mechanics, heat and mass transfer, and chemical kinetics-- with his research intimately involved in the methods for cooling ballistic missiles and manned space vehicles during atmospheric reentry. As his grandchildren say, he really was a rocket scientist. But he would never tell you about all his achievements unless you found out about them some other way and pressured him to explain. As a child, his scientific inquiring mind occasionally caused trouble. When as a small child he read about metals absorbing heat and being malleable, he heated his mother's silverware in the oven, but was unfortunately unable to get the pieces to return to their original shapes. He was a lifelong avid reader, and exhausted the local library. A continually-changing stack of books on all subjects was always next to his chair. A wonderful parent, Harold was always supportive to Steven and Richard, children with his beloved wife of fifty years, the late Margaret Mickley. No question ever went unanswered, and with his incredibly brilliant and logical mind, no problem was ever insoluble, even into his 90's. If he had no prior background in the area in question, he would help craft a solution by logic and innate intelligence. And when queried about his insomnia as he got older, he replied that his cure was to do partial differential equations in his head until he fell asleep. Highly principled, he insisted that all actions reflect honesty and fairness, even if that was not to one's advantage. This integrity led to positions on many institutional boards and committees. With his sons, all he asked was that a 100% effort be given on any task, even if the outcome was not perfect. No son could have asked for more. He will never be replaced, but always remembered. He is survived by his sons, Steven (Diane) and Richard (Cynthia), his second wife, Edith, seven grandchildren, Brian, Karen, Megan, Dennis, Kim, Lisa and Eric, and eight great grandchildren. In keeping with Harold's wishes, there will be no calling hours or memorial services. Interment in Seneca Falls NY will be private. Those wishing to honor him may donate to MIT, Chemical Engineering Unrestricted Fund, in memory of Dr. Harold Mickley and send it to MIT Office of Alumni Records, 600 Memorial Drive, W-98 Second Floor, Cambridge MA 02139.