An expert in theoretical condensed matter physics, Shore’s impact extends beyond the 35 years he spent teaching at SDSU
Former San Diego State University physics professor Herb Shore passed away on February 11, 2024.
Herb Shore got his undergraduate degree in Physics from MIT and went on to complete his PhD in Physics at the University of California at Berkeley in 1966.
Shore was part of the faculty at UCSD before joining the Physics department at SDSU in 1967. He became a Professor in 1979 and retired in 2002, serving as a mentor to many undergraduate and graduate students as well as to younger faculty members in his 35 years at SDSU.
Shore was also a well-published theoretical condensed matter physicist. Usha Sinha, Chair of Physics, joined several years after Shore retired and did not have a chance to interact with him but recalls his kind manner and presence at the colloquiums when she first joined SDSU.
The following comments from current and emeritus Physics faculty capture Shore’s collegial nature, passion for physics and sense of humor.
Patrick Papin (emeritus faculty): “His memory indeed is a blessing. He was always very positive and had a great impact on me both professionally and personally.”
Gordon Shackleford (emeritus faculty): “Herb was an outstanding physicist with an exceedingly large width of knowledge of the field. He was a wonderful person. I had the honor of working with him, the late John Ferguson and the late Lowell Burnett in our Scientific Instrumentation Program some decades ago.”
Arlette Baljon (Professor, Physics): “I took over many of Herb‘s classes when I came 25 years ago and he was one of those hiring me. He retired early; he was a pretty good researcher, he still had 50 citations last year.”
Matt Anderson (Professor, Physics): “Herb was such a nice guy. Even after retirement, he used to come to colloquium every week, and you could always count on him to ask the first question. I remember when he and I ended up on some advisory committee to a group at Spawar. They were trying to research faster than light travel or communications. I remember one of the guys asked Herb and myself: ‘Are you comfortable with the idea that nothing can go faster than light?’ Herb and I looked at each other for a beat, and then said, ‘Yeah, we’re pretty comfortable with that.’”