Oh what a loss. I have known Fred since I started my PhD in GM in 1995. He was so many things, an inspiration, a mentor, but of course also sometimes a very difficult person to be around, being completely unaware of / unconcerned by social platitudes and norms, and thus free to treat people in ways he would never have accepted to be treated himself, but forgiven because he was who he was, and we knew him so well. I spent many good moments with him, sometimes debating methods, other times arguing on what would or could be an acceptable research question. Larger than life, sometimes too contrary but always inspiring. I will miss him immensely. A good man gone. May he rest in peace. Una
On Sun, 21 Jun 2026, 18:35 [email protected], <[email protected]> wrote: > We, Fred’s Viennese colleagues mark his passing with deep respect and > gratitude. We have not only lost a central figure in geometric > morphometrics but a friend, a teacher, a mentor, and a very demanding, > inspiring collaborator. Beyond his extraordinary breadth in statistics, > biometrics, and philosophy, Fred always surprised us and sharpened our > thinking with his unorthodox, creative, yet rigorous solutions. > > From 1998 until the onset of COVID-19, we worked side by side with him > during his regular stays in Vienna—his beloved chosen second home. The many > endeavors we shared, the spirited debates we valued, and his inexhaustible > energy and stream of ideas remain integral to our work. We will miss his > presence and partnership dearly, and we are grateful for the many years we > had together. > Katrin and Philipp for all Viennese colleagues and friends > > Joe Felsenstein schrieb am Sonntag, 21. Juni 2026 um 05:38:45 UTC+2: > >> Morphmet Folks -- >> >> I am sad to report the death of my good friend and >> colleague Fred Bookstein. He died this morning >> at a hospital in Seattle after a struggle of almost >> two years with cancer. >> >> Fred was born on 27 July 1947, so he was 78 >> years old. He is survived by his wife of over >> 50 years, Ede, and two daughters, one who lives >> in London and one in Oakland, and through whom >> they had four grandchildren. >> >> I am sure that people here will have many thoughts >> about his contributions to morphometrics. >> >> Joe >> -- >> Joe Felsenstein [email protected], [email protected] >> Department of Genome Sciences and Department of Biology, >> University of Washington, Box 355065, Seattle, WA 98195-5065 USA >> ----- >> PS: please do not use [email protected], which is an alias >> that some mail systems now mistake as indicating spam. >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Morphmet" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/morphmet2/510c6bd5-da07-40b3-9f3a-12d071ea8a8bn%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/morphmet2/510c6bd5-da07-40b3-9f3a-12d071ea8a8bn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Morphmet" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/morphmet2/CALNNVVFRDdBQhrythjdy%3DzUOWK7PftfQJi2tfFRGHo_5WnjJ%3DA%40mail.gmail.com.
