Before he passed away on July 11, Susumu Tonegawa had been a professor at MIT for more than 40 years. At a memorial service Oct. 16, colleagues, mentees and other friends spanning almost the whole arc of his illustrious MIT career gathered with members of his family to celebrate his life with recollections and stories that praised not only his science and achievements, but even more so his humanity. The picture that 16 speakers collectively painted was one of a man who simultaneously demanded excellence and yet consistently demonstrated kindness and a joyous enthusiasm for science (and art and baseball). Although he was a 1987 Nobel laureate for his breakthrough immunology research and is renowned for his groundbreaking research on memory, the testimonials dwelled little on his awards. Instead, they focused on a much more personal and intimate degree of inspiration and impact. Picower Professor Myriam Heiman, director of The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory that Tonegawa...
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