David Winter passed away at age 81

[Ton van den Bogert]

Dear members of Biomch-L,

With great sadness I share the news with you that David Winter has passed away this morning at age 81. The cause of death was cancer. Bob Norman had spoken to him on Friday and at that time he had minimal pain, although it was controlled with drugs.

The funeral will be this Thursday in Kitchener, Ontario.

A giant of biomechanics has fallen.

I will not attempt to write an obituary here, but you can find a short biography on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Winter.

I invite everyone to write their personal comments in a reply to this post.

Ton van den Bogert
Biomch-L co-moderator

[Petcu Daniel]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

Very sad news. My sincere condolences to his family and friends !

Respectfully,
Daniel

[Edmund Cramp]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

My principle interaction with David Winter was through his students who remain a testament to his abilities to both teach, and make his students think for themselves.

As the only technical representative in the United States for Oxford Metrics/Vicon for many years in the 80's to 90's, I met a great many young kinesiologiests starting work in their first gait lab. I was the one answering their questions and helping them install Force Plates, EMG systems, set up cameras and get the early motion capture systems running. Almost without exception David's students were the ones who hit the ground running and had both the knowledge and the skills to operate and keep these early labs running.

This was no mean feat given that the early cameras, computers and other equipment were balky beasts with an average time between problems that was often measured in days! David's students continually impressed me with their abilities to tackle and solve problems that they had never met before - both in the operation of the equipment and the results generated by the labs. Working with them taught me a lot personally - particularly working with the results of the early gait analysis applications like the Boston Software and the Helen Hayes Software packages - which could be "interesting" at times.

As the technical support guy for Vicon in those years, one of the most common questions from doctors or administrators planning to start a gait lab was, "Where can I find someone to run my lab?" - I could not even begin to count the number of times that my answer was, "Look for one of David Winter's graduates."

[Drew Smith]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

In September 1982, I started my PhD at the University of Waterloo. I had been very fortunate to have received an NSERC scholarship to support my studies, which I thought was the highlight of my career to date. I quickly realised at Waterloo that this paled in comparison to the company with which I was surrounded. The Department of Kinesiology included Norman, Wells, Ashton, Hughson, Houston, Martiniuk and many others. But the person I came to work with was Dave Winter. I only knew him by reputation when I applied to the PhD program and I can still remember the very first time we met in his office that September. I mostly listened but his excitement for biomechanics, along with his boisterous sense of humour, confirmed that his reputation only scratched the surface of who Dave Winter really was. He had high standards for his students and we had to work hard to meet his approval. There were many times when I wondered if I could ever hope to meet the grade. At the same time, he was quick to give credit for good work and innovative thinking. He supported our work and encouraged us to attend conference to present our ideas for feedback.

There is hardly a day goes by that some part of my past interaction with Dave Winter does not surface in some way or another: perhaps, as Edmund as alluded to above, it happens when I troubleshoot some piece of equipment, or advise a student or deliver a lecture. I hear Dave's voice in my head and I know I'm on solid ground. Dave will be missed by many but never forgotten. My condolences to his family.

Rest in Peace.

[H. John Yack]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

David A. Winter was a respected and beloved scientist, mentor, colleague, and friend. We are eternally grateful for the influence he has had on our professional and personal lives. We respected and admired his intellect, his innovative thinking, and his humanity. The echo of our interactions with him and his laughter lives with us.
Dave was very moved by the naming of the ISB "David A.Winter Young Investigator Award" that was announced to him by his long time friend and colleague, Bob Norman, just two-weeks ago, at a Waterloo ceremony. http://biomch-l.isbweb.org/threads/2...stigator-Award


His funeral will be on Thursday in Kitchener, Ontario. http://hwalser.frontrunnerpro.com/ru...emorialCandles

Sandra J. Olney
Jaynie Yang
John Yack

[Chris Kirtley]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

I agree wholeheartedly with everyone's comments so far. David was the final prophet in the distinguished lineup of Aristotle, Borelli, Weber bros., Braune-Fischer, Muybridge-Marey, Bernstein and Elftmann-Bresler-Frankel. I still find it astounding how much he personally contributed, especially considering the level of technology and computing at the time. I have a suspicion that he almost single-handedly inspired the creation of a whole motion capture industry, with its spin-offs in movies, animation etc., and many of the gait labs around the world probably owe their existence to his pioneering teamwork with Jim Gage. What an incredibly productive life!

[Erika Nelson-Wong]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

Through a series of events, I was fortunate to have Dave as a mentor and friend over the past several years. I had come to Waterloo to work with Aftab Patla for my PhD, and he became ill during the first year. Dave had agreed to teach a few of the graduate courses as the department had several faculty members out of commission, so I found myself critically analyzing landmark papers Dave had written in my reading course (if the students were not critical enough, he would point out the flaws in his work for us). He also taught an advanced signal processing course in Aftab's place. I have to say that was one of the best and most useful courses I have ever taken in my entire academic career.

Dave and I connected on a personal level for some reason, and he would frequently end up in my office for a good long chat about a variety of subjects. When Aftab's illness was obviously going to prevent his return, Dave really stepped in to support and guide me in my decisions. While he declined to be on my committee ('I cannot sit through another defense, and I doubt I'll still be around by the time you defend!' were his words - not sure if that was a reflection on his age or my ability to get through in a timely manner), he was always on the sidelines for me to bounce ideas off of and I am proud to have published 2 papers with him in his final years. We have stayed in touch, and I am so happy that I was able to sit and visit with him just a few weeks ago. As others have said, there is not a lecture that I teach, nor a technique that I use in the lab that has not been influenced or touched in some way by Dave. I can only hope to have a fraction of the impact that he has had, and I would consider that to be a successful career.

Remarkable scientist, and wonderful human being.

Erika

[Stephen Prentice]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

The support and condolences for Dave from the international biomechanics community has been profound, although we are not completely surprised given Dave’s impact and leadership in our field. As with many scholars he has influenced, we at Waterloo are saddened by the loss of a biomechanics giant but also mourning the loss of a dear friend. We would like to share the remembrance that appears today on our University's news bulletin.

http://www.bulletin.uwaterloo.ca/2012/feb/08we.html

Stacey Acker, Jack Callaghan, Clark Dickerson, Andrew Laing, Stu McGill, Stephen Prentice, Richard Wells, Robert Norman, Patrick Bishop & Donald Ranney

[Zahra Safaeepour]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

I am truly saddend by his death. As a student, I've always admired his works and his the one whose books are always on my desk.

[Dr. Massimo Cenciarini]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

It is indeed a terrible loss for the field of Biomechanics. Dr. Winter has been very instrumental for the advance of this field. i have met him only once, but I have still a vivid memory of him as a nice person in addition to being a great scientist.

My deepest condolences to his family members and closest friends.

Massimo.

Dear members of Biomch-L,

With great sadness I share the news with you that David Winter has passed away this morning at age 81. The cause of death was cancer. Bob Norman had spoken to him on Friday and at that time he had minimal pain, although it was controlled with drugs.

The funeral will be this Thursday in Kitchener, Ontario.

A giant of biomechanics has fallen.

I will not attempt to write an obituary here, but you can find a short biography on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Winter.

I invite everyone to write their personal comments in a reply to this post.

Ton van den Bogert
Biomch-L co-moderator

[Drew Smith]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

A tribute to Dave on the ISB website:

http://isbnow.isbweb.org/?p=2079

[Chris Baten]

Re: David Winter passed away at age 81

I did not see or talk David fo many years, but I still have a very vivid memory of David's very warm and joyful way of approaching people. This memory always makes me smile.

My deepest condolences to his family members and all who hold him dear.

Chris Baten