Gordon Van Wylen

Gordon John Van Wylen (February 6, 1920 – November 5, 2020)[1] was an American physicist and educator, known for his textbooks on thermodynamics and his service as president of Hope College from 1972 to 1987.

Biography

Van Wylen was born in Grant, Michigan. He served in the United States Navy during World War II.

He received a bachelor's degree from Calvin College, a master's degree from University of Michigan, and a doctorate degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[2]

In 1959, he published a textbook Thermodynamics, in which he stated a belief in "a Creator" in his summation of the second law of thermodynamics. “A final point to be made is that the second law of thermodynamics and the principle of increase in entropy have great philosophical implications. The question that arises is how did the universe get into the state of reduced entropy in the first place, since all natural processes known to us tend to increase entropy? ... The author has found that the second law tends to increase his conviction that there is a Creator who has the answer for the future destiny of man and the universe.”[3]

He was chair of the Physics department at the University of Michigan from 1969 to 1972. He was appointed president of Hope College in Holland, Michigan in 1972, serving until his retirement in 1987. He died on November 5, 2020, of complications from COVID-19, at the age of 100.[4]

Bibliography
  • Fundamentals of Classical Thermodynamics. By Gordon J. Van Wylen and Richard Edwin Sonntag. New York: Wiley, 1973. [note 1][5]
  • Van Wylen, Gordon John (1 January 1959). Thermodynamics. Wiley.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)[note 2]

Notes
  1. According to WorldCat, the book was published in 8 editions and is held in 932 libraries.
  2. Worldcat shows it in 297 libraries. Various editions of these books have been translated into Chinese and Arabic.

References
  1. Library of Congress authority file
  2. "#GivingTuesday". dayofgiving.hope.edu. Retrieved 2020-11-26.
  3. Van Wylen 1959, p. 169.
  4. Olgers, Greg (2020-11-05). "Former Hope College President Gordon Van Wylen Dies". Hope College. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  5. WorldCat item record
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