IN MEMORIAM

Professor Leszek Filipczynski

Member of the INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY FOR MEDICINE AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

On 30th of June 2004 Professor Leszek Filipczynski passed away. Polish science and all of us have suffered a great loss of a scientist who was an outstanding authority on acoustics, particularly on ultrasonic methods in medical diagnosis. He was the man who created the first Polish production of ultrasonographs, a man who organised the work in his Ultrasonic Department in such a way that everybody - scientists, engineers and workshop workers - could do their best and feel an important part of the staff.

Leszek Filipczynski was born on the 23rd of December 1923 in Lódz. He spent five years of the German occupation in a mechanical workshop, which was reflected in his later research work by the application of scientific discovery in practice.

After the war Professor Leszek Filipczynski studied at three universities - in Lódz, in Gdansk and finally in Warsaw, and took his master's degree in electronic engineering. Together with Professor Ignacy Malecki he organised the acoustic laboratory that was incorporated in 1953 into the Institute of Fundamental Technological Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Professor Filipczynski was associated with this institute ever since, until his death, being the deputy director for scientific problems (1969-94), the general director of the institute (1969-74) and the chairman of the Scientific Council (1989-93).

His scientific career was brilliant - in 1955 he took his doctor's degree, was appointed associate professor in 1957, full professor in 1962, corresponding member of the Polish Academy of Sciences in 1969, and full member in 1976.

Professor Filipczynski was the author or editor of 12 monographs and more than 250 original papers and scientific reports published in Polish and foreign periodicals. These works concerned many basic problems in the field of ultrasonics: ultrasonic transducers, material fatigue testing, ultrasonic defectoscopy. He was a pioneer in the application of ultrasonic methods in biology and medicine: among other things his work focused on absolute methods of ultrasonic intensity measurements, ultrasonography of human organs such as brain, abdomen, eye, heart, ultrasonography of pregnant women, application of ultrasonic Doppler methods in blood flow measurements, thermal effects generated by ultrasonic beams, generation and propagation as well as development of metrology of shock waves for lithotripsy and, lately, non-linear propagation of ultrasonic waves in soft tissues.

He promoted 10 doctors who became continuators of his scientific activity in Poland. It should be emphasized that Professor Filipczynski, using his knowledge and authority, pushed forward in the home medical environment a notable group of specialist physicians and co-organized the First International Conference UBIOMED (1970) and the Ultrasonic Section of the Polish Physician Society.

Professor Filipczynski was not only awarded several state prizes (the last one was the Cavalier's Cross of the Rebirth of Poland), but was also recognised by the world-wide scientific authorities as a pioneer in this branch. Among other things, he was granted the Diploma of Pioneer of Ultrasonic in Medicine by the American Institute for Ultrasonic in Medicine in Washington, and in the years 1975-79 he was the vice-chairman of the European Federation for Ultrasonics in Medicine.

Professor Filipczynski was always active and full of initiatives - he was the chairman of the Polish Committee for Acoustics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (1972-), founder and member of the Polish Acoustical Society, and chairman of the Scientific Council of the Institute for Biocybernetics and Biomedical Engineering of the Polish Academy of Sciences (1982-2004).

Since 1993, he was also a member of the New York Academy of Sciences and later was elected to be a Member of the International Academy for Medicine and Biological Engineering.

Professor Filipczynski was considered to be the father of the Polish School of Ultrasonic Medical Diagnosis. He was a man of high erudition and great modesty, a theorist and experimenter, and simply a boss respected by everyone who knew him and respecting others. He was a man of personal charm - a connoisseur of arts and piano playing...

We shall always remember Professor Leszek Filipczynski, not only as a great scientist, but also as a modest and honest man who was always ready to help others and sensitive to their needs.