Ralpha Alpher, 86, passed away August 12. He was an early proponent of Big Bang theory, and predicted the residual cosmic microwave background. For most students of physics, however, he is most famous for the the Alpher-Bethe-Gamow paper, not so much because of its fundamental insight to the early origins of the universe, but for the à propos listing of authors to a paper about the beginning. (Of course, the content of the paper was largely Alpher's math and Gamow's insights; Bethe's name was attached by Gamow's whimsy [of which he has plenty: the Mr. Tompkins series explaining scientific phenomenon through humourous fiction is a prime example]).

Max Roach, 83, passed away August 16. Hardbop pioneer, drummer, equal-rights activist. His most important musical contribution to jazz is the recognition of the drums as a melodic instrument, capable of playing theme, variation, point and counterpoint into a cohesive solo.