D.A. Hill ’51

David was born Aug. 19, 1927, in Syracuse, N.Y., to Allen and Esther Hagenbucher Hill.

He graduated from Syracuse Central High School in 1945 and served in the First Cavalry Division in Japan before coming to Princeton.

At Princeton he was a physics major, belonged to Cannon, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He was awarded the Kusaka Prize, graduating summa cum laude. He roomed with Bill Babson and Harry Emlet. He earned a Ph.D. in high-energy physics from MIT in 1954. His was a life dedicated to nuclear science.

After his time on the MIT faculty, he went on to senior research positions with General Electric, Vitro Corp., and Thompson Ramo Wooldridge, concentrating on isotope separation. Active in developing isotopes used for medical imaging, he held five patents and was elected a fellow of the American Physical Society.

For recreation, he first sailed his wooden ketch on Chesapeake Bay and later a 35-foot sloop on Caribbean waters.

David died June 23, 2015, at home in Tarzana, Calif. Services were held at the First Presbyterian Church in Bel Air, Md. He is survived by his wife, Elaine; three children; two stepchildren; 10 grandchildren; and their families. His brothers John and Robert predeceased him.