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It’s not all that common for a Rhode Islander to get a full-page obituary published in the Sunday edition of The New York Times, but Brown University professor Dr. Leon Cooper was a special man.
Cooper, who shared the 1972 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work studying the theory of superconductivity, died on Oct. 23 in Providence. He was 94.
Cooper, who was born in New York City and graduated from Columbia University, started teaching at Brown at the age of 28, and stayed there for the rest of his storied career. He became intensely focused on neuroscience, specifically on how people learn.
He later helped found Nestor, Inc., which eventually became one of the country’s leaders in traffic monitoring (think red light cameras). The company went into receivership in 2009, and was purchased by American Traffic Systems, but Cooper had left years earlier as part of a board restructuring.
Cooper also had some profound thoughts about Rhode Island that hold true even today.
"There is such a lack of confidence in Rhode Island,” Cooper told The Providence Journal’s Peter Phipps in 1996. “It's astounding."
Cooper’s comments came as he was trying to raise awareness that Rhode Island had the opportunity to be at the forefront of applied neuroscience and treating memory loss.
"We are a leader," he told The Journal at the time. "We're really internationally known. But that's hard for people in Rhode Island to grasp.”
If you want to learn more about Cooper, click the image below to watch a great 2003 interview with him.
🤔 So you think you're a Rhode Islander...
Today's question comes from Ash Wall: How many former governors are buried in Swan Point Cemetary? (You can find the answer below.)
Do you have the perfect question for Rhode Map readers? Don't forget to send the answer, too. Shoot me an email today.
The Globe in Rhode Island
⚓ The proliferation of rats has emerged as an issue in the mayoral race in one of Rhode Island’s largest cities. But Cranston’s battle against the beady-eyed rodents reflects a far larger fight ― one that has left cities such as Boston, New York, and Providence eyeing rat birth control and options beyond traps and poisons. Read more.
⚓ Rhode Island FC fans have been eagerly awaiting the opening of Tidewater Landing soccer stadium along the Seekonk River in Pawtucket. But they will have to wait a bit longer to see a match there. Read more.
⚓ A Rhode Island jury has determined Portsmouth school officials were negligent in how they handled their response to prank calls made to a teacher by a 15-year-old student, who took his own life in 2018, the day after the coach demanded he name other students involved. Read more.
⚓ For students attending — or planning to attend — Rhode Island’s two more affordable public colleges, costs could be going up. Read more.
⚓ The Providence marathon and half marathon will return in 2025, one year after those races were canceled because of the closure of the westbound lanes of the Washington Bridge. Read more.
⚓ This week's Ocean State Innovators Q&A is with Philip Caspers and Steven Bordonaro, founders of Crewless Marine, a startup that provides acoustic devices for uncrewed surface vehicles and undersea vehicles. Email us with suggestions for this weekly interview. Read more.
You can check out all of our coverage at Globe.com/RI
Also in the Globe
⚓ Brian McGrory wonders what Jeff Bezos’ $204 billion net worth buys him if not fearlessness in the face of a carnival-barking, would-be authoritarian who is basically a coin toss away from being, yet again, president of the United States? Read more.
⚓ The mansion that has long served as a backdrop to iconic scenes from the storied Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port, Mass., is now on the market for close to $20 million. Read more.
⚓ There was nothing "soft" about the Patriots on Sunday. Read more.
There are 23 former governors buried in Swan Point Cemetery, according to the cemetery's website. The most recent governor buried there was T.F. Green.
RHODE ISLAND REPORT PODCAST
Ed Fitzpatrick talks to Senate Majority Leader Ryan Pearson about the future of the Rhode Island Senate. Listen to all of our podcasts here.
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