"Butterworth" is a type of polynomial resulting in a transfer function which
>is implemented by a Low Pass, High Pass, Band Pass or Band Reject passive
>or active circuit. The roots of this polynomial fall on a unit circle.
>
>> Does anyone happen to know the first name of the inventor of the
>> Butterworth filter? Or anything else about him? Or whether
>> Butterworth actually invented it? I can't find anything online...
>
You are missing the key ingrediant: It is his wife, known only as Mrs. Butterworth, who is the more famous family member. She was an employee of a large, multi-national food conglomerant in the 1930s. While working as a nutritionist, she invented a way to manufacture pancake syrup from cow mesenteries, and offered her likeness as a sales gimmick for the commercial produce. It is still offered for sale in the USA. Obviously, her contributions to the general health and welfare far outweighed those of her husband, and she is, therefore, much more widely known.
Or...maybe not.
webpa