Pamela Ann Rymer, American federal judge, died from cancer she was 70.

Pamela Ann Rymer ^[1] was a United States federal judge.

(January 16, 1941 – September 21, 2011)

Born in Knoxville, Tennessee, Rymer earned an A.B. from Vassar College in 1961 and an LL.B. from Stanford Law School in 1964. She was Director of Political Research and Analysis for the Goldwater for President Committee in 1964. From 1965 to 1966, she was vice president of Rus Walton and Associates in Los Altos, California. Rymer then entered private practice from 1966 through 1983 in Los Angeles, California. She was also a member and chairman of the California Post-Secondary Education Commission from 1974 to 1984.
On January 31, 1983, Rymer was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States District Court for the Central District of California vacated by William P. Gray. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 23, 1983, and received her commission the following day. In 1987, Reagan attempted to elevate Rymer to the seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit vacated by the elevation of Anthony Mcleod Kennedy to the Supreme Court of the United States, but was rebuffed in the Senate. However, on February 28, 1989, President George H.W. Bush nominated Rymer to the same seat, and this time, she was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 18, 1989, receiving her commission on May 22, 1989.
Rymer served on the Stanford University Board of Trustees from 1991 to 2001.^[2]
In 2010, Rymer received the Stanford Medal for her volunteer work for the university, where two scholarship funds had been created in her name.^[1][2]
Rymer died on September 21, 2011.^[1][3] During her 22 years on the Ninth Circuit, Rymer sat on more than 800 panels and wrote 335 panel decisions.^[1] One of the more notable opinions was in Planned Parenthood v. American Coalition of Life Activists (2002), which held that threats on the Internet against doctors who performed abortions were not protected by the First Amendment.^[1] Fellow judge Stephen Trott said she was a "brilliant jurist" and "a joy to work with".^[1]

To see more of who died in 2011 click here

John Du Cann, British musician (Atomic Rooster), died from a heart attack he was 66.

John William Cann, later known by his stage name John Du Cann, was an English guitarist primarily known through his work in the 1970s band, Atomic Rooster. His early bands included the Wiltshire-based The Sonics (not to be confused with the 1960s US band of the same name) and London-based The Attack, which released "Hi Ho Silver Lining" a few days prior to Jeff Beck. He went on to lead a psychedelic, progressive, hard rock band called Andromeda, before being asked to join Atomic Rooster, featuring re-recorded guitar parts and vocals for their 1970 self-titled debut album, and the albums Death Walks Behind You (1970) and In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971).^[2]

(5 June 1946 – 21 September 2011)

Upon departing Atomic Rooster in 1971 he led Daemon, then Hard Stuff, both of which were based more heavily on aggressive guitar work. In 1974 he was a temporary guitarist in Thin Lizzy for a tour of Germany.^[2] Sometime following this, his manager suggested a name change for him from John Cann to John Du Cann.^[2]
As a result of being signed to the same management company, 1977 saw the pairing of Du Cann with Francis Rossi of the British rock band Status Quo. Rossi was invited to produce Du Cann's proposed new album, The World's Not Big Enough, which remained unreleased until 1992. The session musicians for this album included Rossi on guitar, Andy Bown on keyboards, future Quo drummer Pete Kircher and bassist John McCoy.^[2] The album was described in Record Collector magazine at the time as sounding like "Quo mixed with the Sex Pistols".
In September 1979 Du Cann had a hit on the UK Singles Chart with "Don't Be A Dummy", a Gary Numan-recorded (but unreleased) song from a Lee Cooper Jeans television advertisement from 1978. The single reached number 33 in the UK Singles Chart.^[3]
In 1979, Cann and Crane re-formed Atomic Rooster with Preston Heyman on drums (with whom they recorded on their 1980 self-titled album). Following this, after a brief spell with former Cream drummer Ginger Baker (who was released after only three weeks), Paul Hammond returned to his place on the drums, with two more singles on Polydor released, with minimal success. In late 1982, Cann had had enough of the non-success of the band and went AWOL at the Reading Festival; John McCoy filled in for him on bass while Crane took over on vocals.
In the late 1990s he was introduced to the Angel Air record label by John McCoy. He was later active cataloguing and remastering his personal tape archive and compiling reissues for the label, for which he received full credit and royalties.^[4]
Du Cann died on 21 September 2011 after a heart attack.^[4] As he died without heirs the bulk of his personal collection of 75 guitars, 30 amplifiers, records and CDs was auctioned in January 2012. An original copy of the Andromeda LP made £800, whilst his well used 1963 Fender Strat sold for £6500.^{[citation needed]}

To see more of who died in 2011 click here

Michael Julian Drake, American planetary scientist, died he was 69.

Michael Julian Drake , Regent’s Professor, was the Director of the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and Head of the Department of Planetary Sciences. He was the principal investigator of the Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx)^[1] mission of NASA’s New Frontiers Program. The OSIRIS-REx mission, the most ambitious University of Arizona planetary science project to date^[2] will retrieve a sample of an asteroid and return it to Earth and is due to launch in 2016. He also made significant contributions to the study of HED meteorites and studied the origin of water in terrestrial planets.

(July 8, 1946 – September 21, 2011)

Education

Drake earned his B.S. degree in Geology with honors from Victoria University of Manchester in Manchester, England in 1967 and earned his Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Oregon in 1972.

Career

Drake joined the University of Arizona planetary sciences faculty as an assistant professor in 1973. He served as the associate director of the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory from 1978 through 1980 and was an associate professor of planetary sciences from 1978 through 1983. In 1986 and 1987, he was the Associate Dean of Science, and in 1994 he became the head of the Department of Planetary Sciences and the Director of the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory in 1994. He served in that capacity until his death in 2011.
In addition to his academic and scientific achievements, Drake was an accomplished administrator. He helped develop promotion and tenure policies for the College of Science and was instrumental in establishing a joint position between the colleges of science and education to create science education programs. Drake also led a major undergraduate teaching effort in planetary sciences, even though the department was created as a graduate program.
Drake played a key role in a succession of ever many high-profile space projects that garnered international attention for LPL and the University. Those include the Cassini mission to explore Saturn, the Gamma-Ray Spectrometer onboard NASA's Mars Odyssey Orbiter, the HiRISE camera onboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and the Phoenix Mars Lander.
Dr. Drake had over 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers published in his career.

Awards and honors

Drake received a number of awards and honors during his career, including the College of Science Career Distinguished Teaching Award, Aviation Week and Space Technology 2001 Laurels Award for Outstanding Achievement in Space, Leonard Medal of the Meteoritical Society, and the University of Arizona Senior Honorary Bobcats Outstanding Faculty Member Award in 2006. Asteroid (9022) 1988 PC1 was named Drake in his honor by Carolyn S. Shoemaker.

To see more of who died in 2011 click here

Milton Castellanos Everardo, Mexican politician, President of Chamber of Deputies (1951), Governor of Baja California (1971–1977), died he was 91.

Milton Castellanos Everardo was a Mexican politician and lawyer. He served as the Governor of Baja California from 1971 to 1977.^[1] He also served as the President of the Chamber of Deputies Directive Board for a brief period in 1951.

(March 23, 1920 – October 10, 2011) 

Early life

Castellanos was born in Copainalá, Chiapas, on March 23, 1920.^[1] He earned a law degree from National Autonomous University of Mexico and became a lawyer.^[1] He married Lucía Gout, with whom he had five children - Lourdes, Lucía, Milton Emilio, Jesús and Gerardo. His son, Milton Emilio Castellanos Gout, served as the Mayor of Mexicali from 1989 to 1992.

Political career

He served as a local deputy in Chiapas before moving to the northern city of Mexicali, Baja California, during the 1950s, where he worked as a lawyer. Additionally, Castellanos worked as the head of the legal department for the Mexican Navy.^[1]
Castellanos served as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Baja California from 1959 to 1965. The present-day court complex was constructed in Tijuana during his tenure. He founded the legal publication, Boletín Judicia (Judicial Bulletin).^[1]

Governor of Baja California

A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), Castellanos held office as Baja California's 6th Governor from 1971 to 1977. He earned a reputation as an inclusive and impartial state executive.^[1] Castellanos spearheaded the construction of concrete barriers along the Tijuana River, which ended habitual flooding.^[1] Castellanos also cleared the Cartolandias, which were communities of cardboard shacks which lined the Tijuana River at the time, which had hindered development in the area.^[1] He oversaw the construction of new facilities for the executive, legislative and judicial branches of state government in Mexicali.^[1] Four highway bypasses were also built, two in Mexicali and two in Tijuana.^[1] Castellanos reorganized the Dirección de Difusión Cultural, which moved to the state's former Government House.^[1] New development plans were also devised for each of Baja California's major cities.^[1] Former Tijuana Mayor Fernando Márquez Arce credited Castellanos with bringing impartiality to Baja California's political and legal systems.
Milton Castellanos Everardo died of natural causes at his home in the Jardines del Valle housing development in Mexicali on October 10, 2011, at the age of 91.^[1][2] He was survived by his wife, five children, twenty-seven grandchildren and twenty-eight great-grandchildren.^[1] Castellanos was cremated according to his wishes.^[2] His funeral, which was held at the Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, was presided over by Bishop José Isidro Guerrero Macías of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mexicali.^[1]



To see more of who died in 2011 click here

George Chaloupka, Czech-born Australian historian of indigenous art, died he was 79.

George Jiří Chaloupka OAM, FAHA was an expert on Indigenous Australian rock art.^[1]

(6 September 1932 – 18 October 2011)

Early life

Chaloupka was born in Týniště nad Orlicí, Czechoslovakia. At the age of 17 he left the country, fleeing the communist regime. Arriving in Australia in 1950^[2] as a refugee, he stayed for a number of years in Perth. In 1956, with his older brother, Chaloupka headed for the Melbourne Olympics, travelling via Darwin. It only took one night for Chaloupka to be enchanted by the land and its people.

Employment

Deciding to stay in the Territory, he found employment with the Water Resources Department. Working for the government as a hydrologist, he travelled widely across the Top End.^[3] It was in 1958 that he found the rock art galleries in the east of the territory. Chaloupka gazed at the ceiling of a cave covered with art "and his heart was lost". ^[4] Chaloupka joined the Northern Territory Museum in 1973, and subsequently documented more than 3500 rock sites.^[5]
In 2008 the George Chaloupka Fellowship was established "to promote and support research and conservation of Aboriginal rock art located in Arnhem Land Plateau region in the Northern Territory of Australia."^[6][7] Chaloupka died in Darwin.

Academic career

Higly regarded in academia, with a long list of academic papers credited to his name, Chaloupka was the first President of the Australian Rock Art Research Association as well as a visiting fellow at the Department of Prehistory in the Research School of Pacific Studies at the Australian National University. ^[8]

Selected bibliography

Chaloupka, George Burrunguy : Nourlangie rock. Northart, [S.l.] Chaloupka, George 1985, Chronological sequence of Arnhem Land Plateau rock art. In: Jones, R. Archaeological research in Kakadu National Park. Canberra : Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service, 269-80
Chaloupka, George 1993, Journey in time : the worlds longest continuing art tradition : the 50,000 year story of the Australian Aboriginal rock art of Arnhem Land, Reed, Chatswood, N.S.W
Chaloupka, George & Ash, R 1973, Report on flooding of the Magela Creek in March, 1973, Water Resources Branch, Dept. of the Northern Territory, Darwin
Chaloupka, George 1992, Retouch events. In: Retouch: maintenance and conservation of Aboriginal rock imagery /​ edited by Graeme K. Ward. Melbourne : Archaeological Publications , 1992; p. 12-16;
Chaloupka, George 1988, 'Rock art of the Northern Territory' The Inspired Dream: Life as Art in Aboriginal Australia, no. 1988, pp. 12-19,110.
Gillespie, D. (Dan) & Chaloupka, George & Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service 1983, The Rock art sites of Kakadu National Park : some preliminary research findings for their conservation and management, Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service, Canberra


To see more of who died in 2011 click here

Per Unckel, Swedish politician, Governor of Stockholm County (since 2007), died at cancer died he was 63.

Per Carl Gustav Unckel^[3] was a Swedish Moderate Party politician and at the time of his death the Governor of Stockholm County.

(24 February 1948 – 20 September 2011)

He was born in Östergötland and was at one time chairman of the Moderate Youth League district there. He studied law in Uppsala 1968–71. In 1971, he was elected national chairman of the Moderate Youth League and served until 1976, when he was elected to the Riksdag for Östergötland.
In 1986, he became secretary general of the Moderate Party. He stayed in the post until 1991, when the Moderate Party won the election and Carl Bildt became Prime Minister of Sweden. Unckel was then appointed Minister of Education. In that position, he spearheaded the educational reforms that revolutionised the Swedish education system. Among other things, students were allowed to choose among the local schools.
After the loss in the election in 1994, Unckel became the party spokesman on labour policy. In 1998 he became chairman of the Committee on the Constitution and one year later he was appointed leader of the Moderate Party parliamentary group.
The election in 2002 was disastrous for the Moderate Party and several senior figures had to resign from the board of the party. Per Unckel was one of them. He was seen as a part of the old regime - the so-called "Bunker" around Carl Bildt, together with the likes of Anders Björk and Gunnar Hökmark. His old Moderate Youth League district, however, paid their respects by electing him honorary chairman. In 2003, he was appointed secretary-general of the Nordic Council of Ministers and retired from Swedish politics.^[4] He served until December 2006. He later served as the Chairman of the Governing Board of the European Humanities University.^{[citation needed]}
Unckel died on 20 September 2011 from cancer, aged 63.

To see more of who died in 2011 click here

Victor Blanchard Scheffer, American mammologist and author, died from natural causes he was 104.

Victor Blanchard Scheffer was an American mammologist and the author of eleven books relating to naturalism. He was born in Manhattan, Kansas and moved to Washington state at a young age.

(November 27, 1906 – September 20, 2011)

Early years and education

Scheffer received his bachelor of science in 1930, his master of science in 1932, and his doctorate in zoology in 1936 at the University of Washington in Seattle. In 1937, he began his tenure as a biologist for the United States Bureau of Biological Survey, and remained there for three years. From 1940 to 1956, Scheffer worked for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

Later years

Scheffer's first book, Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses, was published in 1959, shortly after he joined the United States Bureau of Fisheries. While at the Bureau of Fisheries, Scheffer became a lecturer for the Ecology Department at the University of Washington from 1966 to 1972 and was named chairman of the initial United States Marine Mammal Commission from 1973-1976. Dr. Scheffer has served on the advisory board of BirdNote, a radio show about birds, and dedicated to education and conservation, since its creation.His 1969 prize winning book The Year of the Whale is a classic of marine biology that appeared on the New York Times best-seller list.
In November 2006 Scheffer celebrated his 100th birthday and, to date, has written eleven books, many of which are highly regarded by zoologists. Scheffer's father Theophilus (also a biologist) lived be nearly 100 years old, dying in 1966 at age 99.

To see more of who died in 2011 click here