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BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER
19
AUGUST
2016
and fun personality made him an always-
welcomed collaborator. And Bill was indeed an
energetic and joyful collaborator; he welcomed
the process of research not only for the occa-
sional glimpse of the new frontier, but also for
personal contacts made by sharing the adven-
ture with friends.
Part of what made Bill’s life so well lived was
his incredible generosity in interacting with
others. Bill was a model of how outstanding
intellectual achievement can be combined with
a humble and friendly personality. Since his
sad loss, many people have emailed us with
stories of how Bill inspired them. One meticu-
lously organized friend speaks of how he ar-
ranged a meeting with Bill to consult with him
on how to be a parent since Bill’s example had
served as the model that he wanted to sculpt
himself. It is no exaggeration to say that we
never once heard Bill engage in mean spirited
comments or gossip about anyone, and by way
of contrast, heard many people say that they
wish they could be more like him. As a men-
tor, his focus was always on how to best impact
the intellectual development and careers of
his students rather than the oft-seen approach
where students are seen as a conduit to improv-
ing the professor’s career. Students loved the
care he devoted to his teaching, and the dozens
of tributes that have been delivered by former
students since his untimely death only hint at
the tremendously positive impact he had on
them.
Bill’s quiet love of adventure continued outside
of his work life. His love of surfing was well
known, coloring how he spent his mornings
before work, with his analytical mind hard at
work studying storm patterns in the Northern
Pacific that heralded the arrival of a swell in
Southern California several days later. In 2006,
one of us took a two-week trip together with
Bill on a boat in the remote Mentawai Islands
off the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. These
islands are home to some of the most legendary
waves on the planet, where Bill was in the water
with the world surfing champion in an idyllic
tropical paradise that he never forgot.
Above all, Bill was a family man. Anyone who
knew him knew that his family was front and
center no matter what the circumstances. Bill’s
senseless, premature death has left a perma-
nent void for those who loved him most. Bill
is irreplaceable, but his presence helped shape
whoever had the pleasure of knowing him into
a better scientist, friend, and human being.
—
Rob Phillips, Robijn Bruinsma, Alex Levine
Anne Hamacher-Brady
moved from the German Cancer Research Center in
Heidelberg, Germany, where she was an independent research group leader to
become an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health in Baltimore, Maryland.
Yadilette Rivera-Colón
moved from a postdoctoral fellowship at the Depart-
ment of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Perelman
School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, to Bay Path University, Longmeadow, Massachu-
setts, where she is undergraduate research coordinator and assistant professor of biology. Rivera-
Colón is a member of the Society’s Education Committee and an alumna of the BPS Summer
Program in Biophysics.
Have you changed positions recently or know of a BPS member who is? Send news of your move to
ccurry@biophysics.org.On the Move