Bob Thomason
Like many of his colleagues, Bob Thomason hated to waste energy on
trivial matters, like fashion. He made the decision early in life
to dress only in black clothing, thus simplifying that
portion of his life. With his pointed goatee, he looked like a beat
poet to outsiders, but mathematicians knew him as one of the greatest
talents of his generation. Few have had the simultaneous grasp of
topology, algebraic geometry and $K$-theory that Thomason did.
Bob had diabetes and always had to strictly contol what he ate.
This made going to restaurants with Bob an awkward affair, because he
would not eat something until he was sure it had no nutritional content.
Early in November 1995, just before his $43^{rd}$ birthday,
he went into diabetic shock and died in his apartment in Paris.
We are all saddened by his passing.