Remembering Professor William “Nick” Hitchon（英国纪录片《人生七年》里的农场男孩）

缘起

去年2024年了解到一部令人震撼的英国纪录片《人生七年》，后续经过网络搜索知晓到纪录片中一位农场主之子“Nick”，他在1986 年21岁考入牛津大学就读物理系，后在威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校电气与计算机工程系升任教授，但因喉癌于2023 年7月23日去世。

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英文原文

Remembering Professor William “Nick” Hitchon

Written By: Jason Daley（杰森・戴利）
Departments: Electrical & Computer Engineering（电气与计算机工程系）

William Nicholas “Nick” Hitchon, a respected researcher and dedicated educator in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, passed away July 23, 2023. He was 65 years old.

Hitchon joined the faculty of UW-Madison in 1982, focusing on a diverse portfolio of “kinetic” theoretical models and computational modeling tools for low-temperature plasmas used in semiconductor fabrication and lighting, the electrical behavior of semiconductor devices, and microscopic phenomena in magnetic computer storage devices and gas dynamics. Over his career, he published more than 100 journal articles and three books.

Hitchon served on the Graduate School research committee, as admissions chair of the Materials Science Program, and chair of the Physical Science Section of the Campus Fellowship Committee, among other activities. Between 1999 and 2002, he served as the ECE department chair.

During his career, he earned a reputation for outstanding teaching and mentorship, advising more than 20 graduate students, many of whom have taken prominent roles in academia and industry. He taught 25 different ECE courses, including many he developed, at both the graduate and undergraduate level, covering topics including electromagnetic field theory, semiconductor electronics, plasmas and signal processing. He was an ardent advocate for the welfare and success of all students, and his dedication in the classroom led engineering undergraduates to name him an outstanding instructor five times.

One of those who benefitted from his mentorship is Giri Venkataramanan, Keith and Jane Morgan Nosbusch Professor in electrical and computer engineering and director of the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium. Venkataramanan first met Hitchon as a graduate student at UW-Madison before joining him as a colleague and eventually co-authoring a book together. What he remembers most is Hitchon’s unbridled enthusiasm.

“We’d talk about how best to solve problems, and how to teach certain topics,” he says. “Those sessions were so joyous, and never have I had such fruitful interactions with any colleague besides Nick. I’ll dearly miss a friend and colleague.”

Hitchon grew up as part of a farming family in Littondale, England. He is widely recognized outside of academia for his participation in the Up documentary series, which followed the lives of 14 7-year-olds in Great Britain, revisiting them every seven years over the course of many decades. He last appeared in 63 Up, released in 2020.

Hitchon received his bachelor’s (1978), master’s (1979) and PhD in engineering science (1981) from Oxford University.

He is survived by his wife, Cryss, and son, Adam.

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中文翻译

威廉・尼古拉斯・“尼克”・希钦是威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校电气与计算机工程系一位受人尊敬的研究员和敬业的教育工作者，他于2023 年7月23日去世，享年65岁。

希钦于1982年加入威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校任教，专注于研究一系列多样化的 “动力学” 理论模型和计算建模工具，其研究领域涉及半导体制造和照明中使用的低温等离子体、半导体器件的电学特性，以及磁性计算机存储设备和气体动力学中的微观现象。在他的职业生涯中，他发表了100多篇期刊文章，并出版了三本书。

希钦曾在研究生院研究委员会任职，担任过材料科学项目的招生主席以及校园奖学金委员会物理科学部的主席等职务。1999年至2002年间，他担任电气与计算机工程系主任。

在职业生涯中，他因出色的教学和指导工作而享有盛誉，指导过 20 多名研究生，其中许多人在学术界和工业界都担任了重要职务。他教授过 25 门不同的电气与计算机工程课程，其中有许多课程是他自己开发的，涵盖了研究生和本科生阶段，课程主题包括电磁场理论、半导体电子学、等离子体和信号处理等。他热心倡导保障所有学生的福祉并助力他们取得成功，他在课堂上的敬业精神使他五次被工科本科生评为杰出教师。

吉里・文卡塔拉曼南就是受益于他指导的学生之一，文卡塔拉曼南是电气与计算机工程专业的基思和简・摩根・诺斯布施教授，也是威斯康星电机与电力电子联盟的主任。文卡塔拉曼南在威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校读研究生时第一次见到希钦，之后成为了他的同事，最终两人还合著了一本书。文卡塔拉曼南对希钦最为深刻的记忆是他那满腔的热情。

“我们会探讨如何最好地解决问题，以及如何教授某些课程内容，” 他说，“那些交流时光非常愉快，除了尼克，我从未与其他同事有过如此富有成效的互动。我会深切怀念这位朋友和同事。”

希钦在英国利顿代尔的一个农民家庭长大。在学术界之外，他因参与《人生七年》纪录片系列而广为人知，该系列纪录片跟踪拍摄了14名英国 7 岁儿童的生活，在数十年间每七年回访他们一次。他最后一次出现在 2020 年发行的《63 Up》中。

希钦于1978年获得牛津大学学士学位，1979年获得硕士学位，1981年获得工程科学博士学位。

他的妻子克里斯和儿子亚当仍在人世。

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后记

Nick 名为 William Nicholas Guy Hitchon，他于1981年获得牛津大学工程科学博士学位后，前往美国威斯康星大学任教。他在威斯康星大学从事教学与科研工作多年，于2022年退休，2023年7月23日因喉癌去世。该篇文章来自威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校电气与计算机工程系官网讣告，文章链接为“https://engineering.wisc.edu/blog/remembering-professor-william-nick-hitchon/”，该文章最后一行文本有完整讣告的超链接 “https://www.ryanfuneralservice.com/obituaries/professor-william-nicholas-guy-hitchon/” 。