Leonard Frank Cooling (23 December 1903 – 15 February 1977) was an English physicist and engineer widely regarded as the "Founder of British Soil Mechanics".
A promising student, he attended Yardley Secondary School before winning a scholarship to the University of Birmingham, where he graduated with a first-class honours degree in physics in 1925.
Cooling's work laid the foundation for soil mechanics research in Britain, notably investigating embankment slips and retaining wall movements.
[5] In 1937, Alec Skempton commenced what would become a lifetime of work in soil mechanics under Cooling at the BRS, after abandoning his studies on reinforced concrete.
[7][8][9] In 1936, Cooling was the sole UK delegate at the 1st International Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering in Harvard, presenting three papers.