Mr. Francis Harvey Harlow

An American theoretical physicist known for his work in the field of fluid dynamics, he was a researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico. He is credited with establishing the science of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) as an important discipline. He is known for his fundamental contributions to the development of several CFD algorithms for computer simulation of fluid flows, including Particle-In-Cell (PIC), Fluid-In-Cell (FLIC), and Marker-and-Cell (MAC) methods. Particle-In-Cell (PIC) is a technique used to solve a certain class of partial differential equations. In this method, individual particles (or fluid elements) in a Lagrangian frame are tracked in continuous phase space, whereas moments of the distribution such as densities and currents are computed simultaneously on Eulerian (stationary) mesh points. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society since 2003. He was selected "For his contributions to our understanding of low-speed, free-surface, and turbulent flow through computational modeling, and his invention of completely original methods to address these issues." In 2004, he received Los Alamos Medal, the highest honor given to an individual or small group by LANL. Among his published papers are: (1964). "The particle-in-cell computing method for fluid dynamics". Methods Comput. Phys. 3: 319?343with J. Eddie Welch (1965). "Numerical Calculation of Time-dependent Viscous Incompressible Flow of Fluid with Free Surface". Phys. Fluids (American Institute of Physics) 8 (12): 2182?2189; and with John P. Shannon (1967). "The Splash of a Liquid Drop". J. Appl. Phys. 38 (10): 3855?3866. In ?Turing?s Cathedral? by George Dyson, a book he co-authored with Nicholas Metropolis, ?Computing and Computers?Weapons Simulation Leads to the Computer Era,? Los Alamos Science is mentioned.