Jacques Prentki 1920-2009
J. Prentki (second from the left), in discussion with his colleagues.
Jacques Prentki passed away at 3.00 a.m. on Sunday, 29 November at the age of 89.
Jacques Prentki embodied everything that CERN's Theory Division stood for. He joined it at the very start of CERN in 1955 and remained there right to the end. He acted as a link between successive Division Leaders Feretti, Fierz and Van Hove before becoming an excellent and long-serving Division Leader himself. His research on hadron symmetries, first with Bernard D'Espagnat, was extremely important, and he played an instrumental role both within the Division and as the editor of Physics Letters and international conference proceedings.
He was also in very close contact with the experimentalists, including his friends Charles Peyrou and Georges Charpak. He was renowned for his discernment in the field of physics and his remarkable judgement led many to seek his opinion before publishing their work. He was highly cultured with a deep interest in literature, history, music and, of course, science.
We will remember him for his warmth and friendliness with everyone he met and for his genuine modesty.
His colleagues and friends
