Stephen Timoshenko
Stepan (Stephen) Prokofyevich Timoshenko (
1878-
1972), is reputed to be the father of modern
engineering mechanics. He was born in the village of Shpotivka of Chernihiv region in
Ukraine and was educated in
St Petersburg. He lectured at Kyiv University before fleeing to the
USA in
1922. He joined the staff of
Stanford University in
1936. He wrote many of the seminal works in the areas of engineering mechanics and
strength of materials, many of which are still available today.