Dear Photosynthesis Colleagues:
Thomas Roosevelt Punnett Jr., 82, Professor Emeritus at Temple University,
who had a sharp intellect, superb teaching skills, and a great sense of
humor, died July 4, 2008 of Cancer. He was born on May 25, 1926, in
Buffalo, NY.
If anyone wishes to provide any testimonial or tribute to his life is
requested to send his/her write-up to Govindjee (gov from illinois.edu) since
a TRIBUTE is planned for publication in "Photosynthesis Research" at a
later date.
Tom finished his PhD in Physico-Chemical Biology, in 1954 under Robert
Emerson at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He had
discovered, for his thesis, that algal chloroplasts produced oxygen
(Nature, 1953). He then worked as a post-doctorate fellow in biochemistry
at Cambridge, UK, and then as a Faculty member at Rochester University
(1956--1963). He then moved to Temple University in Philadelphia, where he
retired in 1999. He is author of many scientific publications and had an
important patent to his credit.
He is survived by his wife Dr. Hope Handler Punnett; 3 daughters (Laura,
Susan and Jill) and 7 grandchildren.
Govindjee
Reference:
Obituary in Chestnut Hill Local (July 10, 2008)
--
For an International Conference on "Photosynthesis in the Global
Perspective", November 27-29, 2008, Indore, MP, India, see:
<http://www.schooloflifesciencesdauniv.org> for details.
--
Govindjee, Professor Emeritus, Biochemistry, Biophysics and Plant Biology,
Department of Plant Biology, University of Illinois, 265 Morrill
Hall,MC-116, 505 South Goodwin Avenue, Urbana,IL 61801-3707, USA
Telephone: 217-337-0627 (home); fax: 217-244-7246
URL: http://www.life.uiuc.edu/govindjee
