User:Hans Adler/William Stroud

William Stroud (1860–1938) was an English physicist and inventor. Born in Bristol, he was Cavendish Professor of Physics at the Yorkshire College of Science (now University of Leeds) until about 1910.

Beginning in 1888, together with his colleague Archibald Barr, he made inventions related to optical engineering. In 1913 they founded Barr &amp; Stroud Ltd, a Glasgow-based company.

Stroud is also known for inventing or popularising the modern practice of labelling the numerical values of physical quantities with their units. E.g. one would write "mass m, where m = 3 lb" where the former practices was to write "a mass of m lb, where m = 3". This practice allows mixing of base units from different systems of units in intermediate calculations, and it facilitates conversions between the various systems.