<p>Conrad Neumann, the deeply rooted Chilmark native, distinguished oceanographer and poet, died Monday in Durham, N.C. He was 85.
Conrad Neumann, the deeply rooted Chilmark native, distinguished oceanographer and poet, died Monday in Durham, N.C., of complications following a stroke. He was 85 and had been a well-known figure on the Vineyard all his life, especially in Menemsha where he took his place on the summertime benches occupied by fishermen and other salty characters.
An oceanographer who had traveled the world, he was a professor emeritus of geological oceanography at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“I could read the sea,” he said in a 2017 interview with the Gazette about a book a poetry he had just published at the time. “That’s part of my nature . . . the surface of the earth is a beautiful movie.”
Mr. Neumann in Menemsha last summer.
Mr. Neumann in Menemsha last summer.
A. Conrad Neumann was born on the Vineyard in 1933. His grandmother’s first cousin was Lucy Vincent. “My mother swam here each summer with intellectuals and artists from New York,” he told the Gazette. “That had a big influence.”
He lived in Chilmark and attended the Menemsha School and Tisbury High School. After two years of high school on the Island, he transferred to Bayside High in New York so he could attend Queens College and later Brooklyn College, where he graduated with a bachelor of science in geology in 1955. He obtained a master’s degree in oceanography from Texas A&M in 1958.
In the Gazette interview he recalled a high school guidance counselor who tried to dissuade him from oceanography. “He flipped through his plastic notebook and saw no job between obstetrician and optometrist,” Mr. Nuemann said.
But he also recalled the advice offered by his Island fishing mentor Carlton Mayhew: “Keep your own counsel.”
After obtaining his master’s degree, he worked for three years at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and shipped out on the Atlantis I to the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean and the North and South Atlantic. He enrolled at Lehigh University for a Ph.D. in geology in 1963, and went on to do marine geological research at the University of Miami until 1970.
From 1970 to 1972 he served at the National Science Foundation in Washington D.C., after which he moved to the University of North Carolina where he taught oceanography and did research on deep-sea deposits, coral reefs, sea-level and climate change. He used the research submersible Alvin on 33 dives, some as deep as two miles.
He retired from teaching in 2003.
He and his wife Jane were longtime continuous summer residents of Chilmark and Menemsha and lived most of the year in Durham, N.C. In summers they ran a table at the Chilmark flea market.
His sister Jane Slater is the former longtime Chilmark columnist for the Gazette.
Poetry and storytelling were part of Mr. Neumann’s nature.
“Years ago I asked an old Island doctor why I kept talking and telling stories,” he told the Gazette in the 2017 interview. “He told me ‘You’re nervous and should hang out with other nervous people.’ Guess he felt it might make me talk less because I’d see the error of my ways or wouldn’t get a word in. He called it oral hypertension. I turned it into poetry.”
He said his introduction to poetry came from his grandfather, Churchill Dwight Gilmore, who read Longfellow to his grandchildren at bedtime.
In his 2017 book Up-Island Poems, one poem titled Grampy is a tribute to his grandfather.
He had an enduring sense of humor.
“It’s hard to look at yourself and all that’s around you without a sense of humor,” Mr. Neumann said. “People tell me that’s what’s keeping me alive. I’m one of the few people who tell jokes in the hospital.”
Friends who visited him just before his death this week said he was alert and asked about fishing, Menemsha and other Vineyard news.
In addition to his wife and sister, he is survived by a daughter Jennifer Noble and sons Cris Neumann and Jonathan Neumann, and six grandchildren.
There will be no funeral. His ashes will be interred at Abel’s Hill cemetery in Chilmark.
A memorial service is being planned for the Vineyard sometime this coming summer.
Donations in his memory can be made to the Martha’s Vineyard Fishermen’s Preservation Trust, P.O. Box 96, Menemsha, MA 02552.
What follows is a poem from Mr/ Neumann’s 2017 collection titled Up-Island Poems.
•
Water
I was born to water
on an Island in the sea.
The surf outside the window
each night put me to sleep.
Waves against the shore
rumbled to cobbles
on the stormy coast.
The tide murmured as it passed
the red nun in the channel.
The offshore boulders
sang to the surf.
All these sounds and sights of water
are a symphony to me —
a voice that still reminds me
I’m adrift without the sea.
— Conrad Neumann
Comments
Condolences to the family.
Paul Hearty Wilmington NCCondolences to the family. What a great man his was and is. He will live on in his wonderful life contributions.
I just found out about
Robert Burns Huntington/Bayside long island New YorkI just found out about Conrads death reading facebook. I knew Conrad in Bayside NY where he lived around the corner from me with his mom. his mom's sister, her house, and his sister Jane and he. We went to Bayside High together. He was a year ahead of me. We were friends all these years. I went to the vineyard on visits many times. He was a wonderful humourist and artist. His Christmas cards were worth collecting. He will be very much missed by me.
Bob Burns
Conrad was an insipiration
Johann Ali Doral, FLConrad was an insipiration and my reminder of why I loved geology so very much during my time at UNC-Chapel Hill. He was a bit of a legend at my undergraduate alma mater, University of Miami, working and being taught by the legendary Cesare Emiliani; so it was a joy when I was accepted to UNC-CH. His wit and humor, and skill with words were a respite in a sea of what would have been a lot of academia verbiage. He always had a kind word and a kick in the butt when you needed it. He will live on forever in my own work and in my heart, and in the love for geology and the ocean I pass on to new generations of students I interact with — as I know it is for every scholar who studied and worked under and with him. Full sails and fair winds, Conrad!
Conrad was the greatest kind
Kevin Oliver ChilmarkConrad was the greatest kind of man and so the world is a lesser place without him in it. Bless his friends(God knows there are tons of them) and family.
This island has lost one of
Arnie Reisman Vineyard HavenThis island has lost one of its best, its truest, its most delightful. A poet of island life, of the sea, of sunny outlooks. And one of our humor gods. I will miss him like crazy.
Conrad preceded me in
Dr. Lynton Land Ophelia VAConrad preceded me in receiving a PhD from Lehigh University and then moved to Miami where he started a research project on Little Bahama Bank. He invited me to participate. The research received an "Outstanding Paper" award in the Journal of Sedimentary Petrology. Conrad was a master illustrator and I often look at the cartoons he drew of our many Bahamian "adventures" to remind me of those wonderful days and cheer me up. Who can ever forget Conrad's stories, like when the engineer on the Atlantis experienced a runaway camel and shouted "But I was ringin' full astern!" True or not, he cracked people up no matter how many times you heard the stories, and remembering them still makes me laugh. That same humor in the classroom made him an effective and loved teacher, who enriched the lives of many.
Conrad's PhD from Lehigh
Dr. Lynton S. Land Ophelia VAConrad's PhD from Lehigh University preceded mine. He moved to Miami where he started a research project on Little Bahama Bank, and asked me to participate. The research resulted in an "Outstanding Paper" in the 1975 Journal of Sedimentary Petrology. Conrad was a master illustrator. I still enjoy the cartoons he drew of our various Bahamian "adventures," remembering those wonderful times and cheering me up. Conrad was also a master story-teller. His description of the chief engineer of the Atlantis experiencing a runaway camel and shouting "But I was ringin' full astern!" still makes me laugh. Combining humor and talent made him an excellent teacher, who positively touched many lives.
Conrad and I often disagreed
Eugene Shinn USF College of Marine Science, St. Petersburg, FloridaConrad and I often disagreed on some scientific interpretations but he remained a good friend throughout. It was always a joy to be with him. I do hope someone will collect his drawings for publication. He had a unique way of expressing geological processes with witty cartoons.I will certainly miss him. Gene
After 7 summers wof saying we
Julie Coleman Chilmark / Chapel HillAfter 7 summers wof saying we would have Captain Conrad and his first mate Jane over for chowder in N.C. In the winter time. We did. Then over the next 20 years or so we did Mexican instead... I was hoping to see him tomorrow at the hospital. Instead his photo is with my husband Bill's at an altar of remembering... Two friends who fished together and sat at alley's together and are hopefully now in spirit together. Julie Coleman ,
Such a lovely tribute, Julie.
dana stone durham, ncSuch a lovely tribute, Julie.
Deepest condolences to the
Erich Greenebaum MenemshaDeepest condolences to the family and his many friends. Conrad had such a great wit and spirit, I'm grateful I got to meet and know him a little in the last few years.
Conrad Neumann was an
Pamela Hallock St Petersburg, FloridaConrad Neumann was an "original", as authentic as the sea he loved. It made me laugh when I would see others actually attempt to "be like" Conrad instead of being their authentic selves. He reminded me of my own Father in that respect. "Authentic characters" unfortunately seem to be ever fewer and farther between these days, even as there are far more of us crowding this Earth. The memorial above doesn't mention his artistic talents; his doodles were wonderful, some live on in some of his publications. He will be missed.
I had the privilege of being
Dr. Harold Wanless University of MiamiI had the privilege of being Conrad's first graduate student when he came to the University of Miami in 1965, and worked under him both on the Little Bahama Bank research and his coring in the deep marshes of Bermuda to establish his famous,valuable and widely used "unpublished" sea level curve of Bermuda and the Bahamas. I could not have had a finer mentor to start me on my life of research and teaching. Conrad's early poetry and frestration relief was in his amazing cartoon sketches, which most of you saw through his family Christmas cards. Conrad was amazingly creative in this science, constantly pondering and improving or changing direction as new information (or ideas) appeared. It was sometimes a bit nerve wracking for a graduate assistant, but it was the very best of science in action. To Jane and Neumann family, Conrad lives solidly on in the profound influence he had on all of his many students and theirs.
Conrad arrived at our
Eileen Maley West TisburyConrad arrived at our strength training class each June like a long-stemmed day lily. He claimed he didn't enjoy exercising but his warmth and humor eased the pain of it for the rest of us. We were truly sad to see him leave each October. This summer will be tougher.
I was fortunate to sail with
Harold Hudson Miami, FloridaI was fortunate to sail with Conrad on a RSMAS research trip to the Little Bahama Bank aboard a refitted US Army river boat. When he wasn't doing amazing science, Conrad would regale myself and the rest of the crew with sea chanteys,almost all of which were bawdy and irreverent. Amazingly, he never repeated himself with an endless repertoire of salty humor that kept us in stitches. His, was a special genius that will not pass this way again.
I spent six watershed years
Kenneth Rasmussen Chesapeake Beach, MDI spent six watershed years of my life with Conrad, as his PhD student at UNC-Chapel Hill from 1983-1989. He will remain one of the most influential people in my life – as a scientific and teaching mentor, and more recently as a dear old friend. Conrad’s unique gift for seeing hidden patterns and processes in nature, and intuitively asking the most essential questions about them, with almost childlike wonder, is something I will never, ever forget. He was a maddeningly original thinker – one of the most creative and funny free-spirits you could imagine. Whether it be about his science, stories (“yarns” as he was apt to call them), cartoons, or clogging, people everywhere we went gravitated to Conrad. I can vividly recall how he would hold court with undergrads, grads, ship’s crew, and seasoned professional scientists alike, all of us waiting for the wit and insight to flow from him like water. And he did not disappoint – there will never be another Conrad. My students continue to reap the benefits of our years together. I feel grateful for those remarkable years. Thanks Conrad.
Conrad recruited me to the
Chris Martens Dept of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillConrad recruited me to the Marine Sciences program at UNC-Chapel Hill during 1973. We arrived in 1974 from sunny New Haven. Jane, his wonderful partner in everything, was equally important as most who knew them would already know. From the start my group went on many ACN cruises as the chemists and we had incredibly interesting experiences all over the Bahamas, off the SE coast and over two miles down during ALVIN sub dive missions off west Florida in the deep Gulf of Mexico. Along with colleagues we just participated in a 50th year anniversary celebration of our PhD program in which Conrad was the very first faculty member. We looked over a number of his famous science "cartoons" based on his incredible powers of observation and thought. We also viewed some of his poems and funny postcards to friends and walked through his "Legend of WHOI Bob" with Dana Densmore, a tale that I never tire of reading through. At the end of a little presentation I brought out my 3rd edition 1897 copy of Darwin's famous book on coral reefs and dared to compare Conrad's talent with Darwin's. I believe that Conrad was a genius whose fame will grow over time if we keep his elegant and incredibly detailed drawings alive. We all use them in our classes at UNC and I know that their use has spread to other institutions- let's keep that going as we pay our respects to Jane and the family. Conrad's passing is simply a huge loss to all of us.
Conrad was the most
Al Hine, Professor Emeritus USF College of Marine Science, St. Petersburg, FLConrad was the most influential mentor and one of the best friends I have ever had. He was also the most creative person I ever knew. His humor was unmatched. He was unique. I will miss him more than I probably realize at this moment in time.
Another wonderful and truly
island MVAnother wonderful and truly special islander has slipped his lines and is now resting ashore. We'll all miss Conrad, his wit and wisdom as well as his stories and cartoons. His family, his friends and the world are all the poorer for his death. Fair winds and a following sea!
Conrad taught me that what we
Bill Trumbull Chicago, ilConrad taught me that what we do in life should be serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; done with a sense of urgency, purpose, and awe.
I had the pleasure of fishing
Albert Fischer West TisburyI had the pleasure of fishing for fluke with Conrad in his skiff off of Dogfish Bar a few times over the years. Conrad liked to fish with a hand line, the way he did as a boy growing up. Conrad was a great story teller, his ramblings were full of wit, humor and intelligence. Fishing with Conrad or just speaking with him on the dock transcended you back in time.
Conrad had a gift for gab, he would jump from one story to another and I never lost interest in what he had to say.
Fair winds my friend, you will be missed by all who you touched.
Jane , just devastated for
Nan and Michelmore Family Palisades N.Y.Jane , just devastated for you the Family and Friends ...Our stay in Menemsha each year
has always been to see you and Conrad .To do a little clamming , noshing on our days
catch , talking the night away . A wonderful man and friend .Never to be forgotten.
My Love to All ,
Nan
Conrad was indeed both a tall
Paul Enos Lawrence, KansasConrad was indeed both a tall dog in oceanography and an original. My contact Conrad and Jane was mostly in the Miami years, but the memories are vivid. I won't discard my worn-out T-shirt with Conrad's 'carbonate sediment'cartoon after all.
Although we spent only days
Barbara Gold Winter PArkAlthough we spent only days of many summers on Martha's Vineyard, either in our boat or renting a cottage for many years, whenever we saw Conrad, or Jane, we were always treated like "best friends".
We remember attending a lecture he gave and that is embedded in our memories, which we share with others. Condolences to his family and best friends.
As a M.S. graduate student,
Bret Jarrett Coastal Carolina UniversityAs a M.S. graduate student, spending 2.5 years with Conrad on a daily basis (often including weekends), it would be futile to try and convey his tremendous impact in this short remembrance. I will just say that Conrad will always be at the top of my list of people that I have been fortunate and proud to know and have as a friend. He was by far the most unique, creative, and fun person to be around that I have ever met. One memory that keeps coming to mind is the vision of him with his head down at the light table ten minutes before class, hurriedly trying to gather the best slides for that topic among hundreds he had available from his adventures around the world. If I walked in to his office during that busy time, he would never turn me away, but rather, would immediately start talking/laughing/rambling about the subject topic and regale me with the interesting stories behind the slides. He might also ask me to help load the slide tray(s)! Conrad was a caring person, who always had time to entertain, teach, and inspire. Thank you Conrad.
I met Conrad first in 1988 at
Andrea Mindszenty Budapest, HUNGARYI met Conrad first in 1988 at an-Excursion devoted to paleokarst and bauxites intercalated in Cretaceous carbonates of the Southern Appennines. He immediately recognized the striking similarity of subaerial exposure related features of the Cretaceus scenario to what he knew very well from the Pleistocene/Holocene environments of his beloved Bahamas. It was wonderful to listen to his explanations. His enthusiasm was absolutely contagious and when he said „you should come and see all these, right there ont he islands” I just thought „Oh, it woud be great to do so…” but it seemed to be impossible looking at it from Hungary of the ’80ies”… And, all the same, just a year later with Conrad’s letter of invitation, the great trip to the Bahamas came true. It was unforgettable (and almost unbelievable) to become a member of his Sedimentology Class and share all the adventures of swimming over the coral reefs and blue-holes, studying red clays on exposure surfaces intercalated in Plesitocene dunes and listen to the explanations of the „Big A.C.N.” (that’s how we called him then). That week on San Salvador and two years later another week on Eleuthera were decisive from the point of view of my attitude to the nature of transgressive facies successions over a karstic surface… Still I keep recalling those memories and when speaking about carbonate platforms to my students I never forget to tell them that the famous keep-up,. catch-up, give-up terms were coined by A.C.N.
I also had the opportunity to visit the Neumann Familiy in that wonderful little wooden house in Durham (with all the cats and dogs and chickens). Their way of living has been for me an example to follow ever since then… His creative Christmas messages he kept sending every year with his amazingly talented drawings (all made with his left hand and including all the important events of the preceeding year) were testimonies of not only his humour but also of his artistic attitude to life. He was the best example to prove that good geology is indeed, not only science but also art. That’s what he was: an extremely creative and talented artist in the field of carbonate sedimentology and with the same artistic attitude he turned towards people around him. A very rare species novadays!
Farewell, Conrad! Thank you for everything! We shall miss you and will never forget what we have learned from you.
Conrad showed me how to fish
Jeff Ilardi Eastpoint , FloridaConrad showed me how to fish Menemsha waters and every time was a learning experience and lots of laughs. He took his little outboard to Devil's Bridge . A true waterman. We caught bluefish, scup, stripers, and fluke together. What a fine man ! He took me and my wife Caroline hand lining and she never forgot it.
When we bought "the old
PAULA LYONS VINEYARD HAVENWhen we bought "the old Larsen Place" on Larsen Lane back in 1986, our first visitors were Conrad and Jane. They lived behind us. Over 25 years there, we spent many a rollicking evening over G and T's, mussels, fresh caught fish. Conrad's stores are legendary and his sense of humor boundless. Jane was his perfect audience and a big contributor to the fun too. We grew to love them both and it is now hard to imagine Menemsha without Conrad. He was a presence, a fisherman, a poet, a geologist, who loved, loved, loved, this, his birthplace; and taught me to love it too. Rest dear friend. You earned it.
Conrad was a lovely man. May
John ChilmarkConrad was a lovely man. May he rest in peace in the arms of our Lord.
I met Conrad four years ago
Dana Stone Durham, North CarolinaI met Conrad four years ago at the Friday Noon Poets group in Chapel. His wit, understanding, intellect, and sense of beauty never ceased to amaze me. I recall how delighted I was when he announced he had published Up Island. What an exciting moment that was and I will treasure his book always. One of the character traits that I most admired about him was his humility.
Today we sat around the table and read Conrad's poems and reflected on what a great guy he was. One of my favorite memories of him was the day he told us about how he courted Jane. I kind of got the feeling it was love at first sight. To all of his family and friends, my deepest condolences. I will miss him.
Conrad, dear friend, I will
Joanna Catherine Scott Chapel Hill, NCConrad, dear friend, I will miss your nonsense. My deepest condolences to you, Jane. He was a creative mind.
It was a very good day for me
Salli Benedict Chapel Hill NCIt was a very good day for me when Conrad joined my fitness class at Seymour Center in Chapel Hill NC. He was there every Wed and Friday morning if he and Jane were in town, and what a wonderful addition and example he was for all of us! As a long time fitness instructor, I so appreciate those folks who show up with a good sense of humor, and who participate to the extent their physical bodies allow. Conrad never gave up and was generous with his humor, his poetry and his love of life. I miss you very much and I will always remember you, Conrad. My deep condolences to Jane and family.
Conrad was my mentor, my
Cindy Pilskaln, Professor UMass School for Marine Science and Technology, New Bedford, MAConrad was my mentor, my colleague, my fishing buddy and great friend. From the moment he invited me on a series of ALVIN dives and I came to UNC as his post-doc in 1984, I knew that I had been given an amazing gift of friendship that would last a lifetime. Jane and Conrad folded me into their wonderful, creative family full of laughter and music, like I was one of their own. I learned by example from Conrad that teaching geology and oceanography with real stories and enthusiasm for the science we love was the way to truly reach students—-and I, like others, incorporated into my own courses his fabulous scientific cartoons that he generously gave to so many. This man never ceased to revel in deciphering earth’s stories told in the rocks and by the sea, whether it be on his umpteenth oceanographic research cruise, Shackleford Banks field trip, Bahamas geology field course, or trek around “the cliffs”—and then he shared it all with us in his poems. He taught me to fish for blues, hand-line for flounder (while singing a shanty), dig and shuck clams, how to make the best G&T, and grow anything in the red NC dirt—-and most importantly, to have confidence in myself as an oceanographer, embrace every new adventure with gusto, and not to take myself too seriously. You gave me so much my friend—-I can never thank you enough. You are of the sea and the island, and there you will always be. I will miss you forever.
I can add little to the
Charles Messing Currently at sea, Exuma Sound, BahamasI can add little to the wonderful comments already posted about my mentor in geology and friend, Conrad, except to say that he was instrumental in my development as a deep-sea biologist, having invited me, as a marine invertebrate zoology grad student at University of Miami, on an ALVIN expedition to the Bahamas to tell him what was "growing on his rocks." He also offered me the opportunity to co-author a paper with him (and Judy Lang) on his beloved deep-water carbonate lithoherms (which has probably been cited by others more than any other journal paper that bears my name). It was a real pleasure to visit Conrad and Jane last summer in NC. My deepest condolences, Jane. Conrad will be greatly missed and never forgotten.
I was Conrad's last graduate
Blair Tormey Western Carolina UniversityI was Conrad's last graduate student at UNC, and I am eternally grateful that I convinced him to take on one final student. I once joked with Conrad that he had saved the best for last, to which he quickly replied, "Are you kidding? You are the reason I'm retiring!" He had an amazing wit and enviable charm. Countless times, I walked into his office with a specific plan or question, and left hours later having discussed and wondered at everything under the sun, and completely forgotten my initial reason for the visit. It never mattered. Any time spent with Conrad, was time well spent.
My life, career, and way of viewing the world is forever changed for the better because of Conrad. Fair winds, dear friend.
I have just learned that
Janet Messineo Vineyard HavenI have just learned that Conrad has passed away. My condolences to his wife Jane and his family. I met Conrad and Jane a few years ago. I love his poem Bass Fishing in Squibnocket, He gave me permission to use it in my up and coming fishing memoir, Casting into the Light. so sorry and so sad but happy that many more people will get to enjoy one of his writings. RIP Conrad
As a freshman at Carolina in
Todd Miller North Carolina Coastal Federation, Ocean, North CarolinaStarting when I was a freshman at Carolina in 1975, Conrad took his valuable time to advise and most importantly encourage my interests in coastal management issues. He became the faculty advisor for a small University sanctioned group called the "Coastal Club" that provided a forum for students and faculty interested in coastal issues to hold campus events and field trips. The connections forged during those college years have served me well for my entire career and I credit him with helping to shape and inspire my life. He and his family became good friends during my tenure at Carolina, and I miss his illustrated artistic pen and ink Christmas cards that for decades kept me up-to-date on his family and activities.
Conrad was, by far, the most
Mark Boardman, Professor Emeritus, Miami University Oxford, OhioConrad was, by far, the most influential and inspirational person in my professional life. He was a scholar-teacher whose humor and doodles and stories stemmed from, and belied, a deep attachment to data, to visualizing the truth and to sharing it and himself with others. And, oh, how I loved his stories.
Perhaps the most important lesson or insight that I attribute to him is to think outside the box, to not let the story be the guide, but follow the data - that facts must guide the story. Many, likely most, of the multiple working hypotheses he promoted were wrong, but he had them, and they were scientifically stimulating, and many were right, and I am grateful to him for sharing this attribute of his - the freedom to think outside the box. He was amazingly creative.
He was a scholar, artist, poet, historian, and a friend. I am thankful for my good fortune to have worked with him and known him for so many years. He made a difference.
As a grade school kid growing
Rob Martens Carmel, IndianaAs a grade school kid growing up running through Venable Hall on UNC-Chapel Hill’s campus, Conrad Neuman was a fun, larger than life character who always had a new drawing, story or joke to share with me. Conrad blended art and science in a beautiful way, and was certainly one of a kind. Our sincere condolences to Jane, Jennifer, Cris and Jonathan. He will be missed, but remembered for his unique genius and gentle ways.
I have just learned that
Arturo Raspini Napoli and Firenze, ItalyI have just learned that Conrad has passed away. Condolences to Jane. I met Conrad in 1995 and spent more than a month with him and Jane in the legendary "Neumann Family wooden house", making the farmers (during the weekends) and playing with dogs and beautiful cats (I clearly remember Spit, the black cat...)... and speaking about everything (despite my limping english and his limping italian) at the Chapel Hill Campus....before leaving for the Bahamiam Field Station with students (I was a PhD student at the time) and researchers.....unforgettable man and beautiful mind! Better to have lost you than never having met you.
Ciao Conrad!
I have just learned that
Arturo Raspini Napoli and Firenze, ItalyI have just learned that Conrad has passed away. Condolences to Jane. I met Conrad in 1995 and spent more than a month with him and Jane in the legendary "Neumann Family wooden house", making the farmers (during the weekends) and playing with dogs and beautiful cats (I clearly remember Spit, the black cat...)... and speaking about everything (despite my limping english and his limping italian) at the Chapel Hill Campus....before leaving for the Bahamiam Field Station with students (I was a PhD student at the time) and researchers.....unforgettable man and beautiful mind! Better to have lost you than never having met you.
Ciao Conrad!
I sailed with Conrad around
Alexander Nicolar Keyserlingk TamaracI sailed with Conrad around the world on the 2009 winter term of the Semester at Sea program, He was so popular he had 150 students sign up for his course. The dean cut it back to 30 which did not make Conrad happy but he only had 30 chairs in his classroom. He loved his students and they loved him. I became his helper as I registered in that class as an adult. In Hong Kong, he came with my wife Brigitte, my Grandson Emmett and me to my office at the World Bank. He produced a $5 note and asked the receptionist to open an account for him at the World Bank. He was a great scholar and a lot of fun to he around. He will be missed.
My best buddy's mother rented
Philip Kopper Chevy Chase MDMy best buddy's mother rented a Chilmark barn c. 1950 and Conrad was then the older kid nextdoor who taught us city boys how to beachcomb and take care of tools properly and paint barn trim (not like Tom Sawyer). When I got in touch again sixty-some years later Conrad greeted me like a friend from yesterday. By then he could inform me about seabed cores and ancient corals and global warming. He took me to the best chowder shop in Menemsha; we swapped memories and his poems. He always was a teacher, a sharer, and wonderful company; I just wish I'd gotten back in touch again sooner.
So you knew Conrad the same
Janice Bader SeattleSo you knew Conrad the same time we did. First time we met Conrad we were kids in College Station Tx and he worked with my dad at Texas A&M Then we moved to D.C. When my dad went to the NSF. Our experience with Conrad was the same. We loved him.
Conrad was our favorite when
Janice Bader SeattleConrad was our favorite when were kids in DC in the early 60s and my dad Richard Bader would have him over to hang out on weekends. He drew cartoons for us and we were so excited whenever he was coming. Two years ago I called him out of the blue and he remembered me and talked about our family and my dad, like it was yesterday. The last time I saw him was when my dad died in 1974. I just saw an old cartoon he wrote to Keith Chave in 1970s and thought I would connect with him again and saw this obituary. I am so sorry Your loss because he was a wonderful man who made a much too serious child laugh.
My heart breaks reading all
Dr. R. Jude Wilber Falmouth, MAMy heart breaks reading all this. And well it should. Others have put here what I could not. Especially Ken Rasmussen and Mark Boardman and others of the Carbonate Working Group. Our labs and equipment scattered in the bowels of Venable Hall at UNC - Chapel Hill. Did I take so damned long to complete my Ph.D. under Conrad because I loved so much that he had brought to me? Or was it that I just loved Chapel Hill so much - as did he. So much learning and ass-busting work. I did bioherm cements as a Duke Masters student. I did sea level and chronostratigraphy. I became a man in Chapel Hill. And yes I more than most argued with Conrad. Out-in-the-hall screaming matches - disturbing everyone. I held my ground, he held his. I didn't like it but I think he enjoyed seeing someone rise to his level of passion. He may have thought: "He'll be OK. He will keep his own council." I still have copies of his cartoons... And when it came time to commit "professional suicide" by "wasting my degree" on wooden boat-building and eventually sailing the tall ships for Sea Education Association...? Well Conrad, who sailed on the A-boat, may have thought: Well at least one of my students got it right." I grew up in rural NW PA. Cannot remember when I first saw the Ocean. So much different from Conrad and the Island. But once I saw I wanted ALL of it. Like Conrad I hungered to go sea and see and see and see.
Conrad is gone and life
Christopher G. St.C., Kendall Columbia, South CarolnaConrad is gone and life speeds on, leaving us bouncing in his wake. It is sad to know that while I was in hospital and rehab avoiding my own demise, recovering from an elevated heart rate and being treated like a bean bag by the ever-positive medical crew around me, my buddy in North Carolina was gone.
I first met Conrad in Baltimore when I was a Harkness Fellow in 1966-67 and the great mover Robert Ginsburg gathered a group of young carbonate geology enthusiasts together to discuss their research and future. Conrad was one of those fellows and he left a lasting impression on myself and those around us as an eclectic gentle guy overflowing with ideas and good humor. His creative spirit captured the new carbonate world which enveloped the careers that were unfolding in the geological community of the seventies. Conrad was the lively spear carrier whose creative genius egged us onto to unravel more of mysteries that have kept us all preoccupied with their beauty and the joy of discovery. As all those who knew him remember, he left a wealth of his geological cartoons that were outrageously great. Conrad was a true Renaissance man probing the depth of these mysteries in the all encompassed world of marine geology. We did not always agree with his ideas, but his inspiration drove us on to delve deeper and unravel more. He kept life interesting and his humor entertained us continuously as did his stories. I particularly like the one in which he lost unrecovered mashed potatoes in a white shag rug.
Conrad is gone and life
Christopher G. St.C., Kendall Columbia, South CarolnaConrad is gone and life speeds on, leaving us bouncing in his wake. It is sad to know that while I was in hospital and rehab avoiding my own demise, recovering from an elevated heart rate and being treated like a bean bag by the ever-positive medical crew around me, my buddy in North Carolina was gone.
I first met Conrad in Baltimore when I was a Harkness Fellow in 1966-67 and the great mover Robert Ginsburg gathered a group of young carbonate geology enthusiasts together to discuss their research and future. Conrad was one of those fellows and he left a lasting impression on myself and those around us as an eclectic gentle guy overflowing with ideas and good humor. His creative spirit captured the new carbonate world which enveloped the careers that were unfolding in the geological community of the seventies. Conrad was the lively spear carrier whose creative genius egged us onto to unravel more of mysteries that have kept us all preoccupied with their beauty and the joy of discovery. As all those who knew him remember, he left a wealth of his geological cartoons that were outrageously great. Conrad was a true Renaissance man probing the depth of these mysteries in the all encompassed world of marine geology. We did not always agree with his ideas, but his inspiration drove us on to delve deeper and unravel more. He kept life interesting and his humor entertained us continuously as did his stories. I particularly like the one in which he lost unrecovered mashed potatoes in a white shag rug.
Conrad took me on my first
Mark Haibach Pittsburgh, PAConrad took me on my first oceanographic research cruise in the Bahamas in the 80s. He was a most generous teacher and mentor. His love of the oceans, marine geology, and life were evident in his classes, research, art, entertaining stories, philosophy, and life lessons that he shared with his colleagues and students each day.
Conrad, to me, you were the tambourine man and these lyrics in Dylan's song remind me of you:
"Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky
With one hand waving free
Silhouetted by the sea
Circled by the circus sands
With all memory and fate
Driven deep beneath the waves
Let me forget about today until tomorrow"
I took Conrad's Oceanography
Roger Schlegel Takoma Park, MDI took Conrad's Oceanography course as an elective in the mid-1980s in Chapel Hill. He was one of the finest teachers I ever had, for all of the reasons others have expressed. He exemplified someone who was a fully realized human being, authentic and attentive to all, fully in touch with his intellectual, emotional, and even spiritual understandings of the world. I majored in history but retained an abiding interest in marine science and climate, and today I teach a high school humanities elective that addresses the question "How should we live" in light of our knowledge about the dynamics and constraints of the Earth system of which we are a part. Professor Neumann encouraged me to keep my imagination active even when in a scientific mode of inquiry, as when he wrote a comment appreciating my marginal conjecture on a test that Lake Baikal might represent the early stages of a new rift valley that will eventually separate the Asian continent into two. I was so grateful that he introduced all of us in the course to the Rare Book Collection in Wilson Library, where I pored over the journals of an early United States scientific ocean exploration expedition. But what I'm most grateful for was the day when Dr. Neumann took the better part of a class to draw a diagram illustrating what was for him a basic and most helpful piece of wisdom to share: Life, he said, is about constantly choosing between acting on the basis of Fear and acting on the basis of Love. The choice of Love always brings goodness into the world, he said, while the choice of Fear tends to lead to destructive outcomes. Conrad's wisdom remains alive as I share it with my own students now each year, crediting and thanking him as I do so. Many of these students will be alive to see the year 2100, and I hope it does Conrad good to know not only that they may incorporate his wisdom into their lives throughout this century, but also that they (and all of us) may recall and use that wisdom as our compass as we navigate the treacherous waters of the decades ahead. Rest in peace and much gratitude to you, Conrad!
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