Engineering Professor David W. Nicholson Dies at 69

A UCF College of Engineering and Computer Science professor has passed away.

David W. Nicholson, Ph.D., emeritus professor, passed away on Jan. 23, 2014 at the age of 69. Nicholson joined UCF in 1990 as chair of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE). He retired after 20 years of service to UCF, during which he served nearly nine years as chair or interim chair of MAE.

Dr. Nicholson is credited with overseeing the creation and realization of Materials Science and Engineering program at UCF, and the Masters in Aerospace Engineering program.

“He always had a forward-looking vision for the department, always promoting the ‘next big thing’ for MAE and ever keeping the department ahead of the game,” said Challapalli Suryanarayana, MAE chair. “He relentlessly promoted the interests of mechanics, aerospace engineering, thermo-fluids, materials, and notably bioengineering well before the latter became a college-wide initiative.”



Sponsored Advertisement - Story Continues Below


He is known for his devotion to the integrity of MAE’s academic programs, particularly in computational engineering.

“It is due to him that MAE students, both undergraduate and graduate, are exposed to a strong and comprehensive modern engineering computational program that features finite element analysis, computational thermo-fluids, solid modeling and CAD-CAM (computer-aided design and computer-aided modeling),” Dr. Suryanarayana said.

Dr. Nicholson’s research focused on non-linear mechanics, the finite element method, and fracture mechanics. He authored 158 journal papers, a successful textbook, Non-linear Finite Element Method, and numerous monographs and conference papers, UCF stated. He also served as technical editor of Applied Mechanics Reviews and associate editor of Tire Science and Technology.

Colleagues of Dr. Nicholson remember him for his likable personality and positive attitude.

“He maintained a most jovial and inspirational attitude,” one colleague wrote. “Professor Nicholson was always upbeat, happy and exhibited the can-do and creative approach to tackling any problem be it administrative, pedagogical or intellectual; and that, along with his infectious and boisterous laugh, was the hallmark of his chairmanship and professorship.

“Professor Nicholson touched many lives at UCF.”