Heinz Rudolf Pagels ’60

DR. HEINZ PAGELS died on July 24, 1988, in a mountaineering accident at Pyramid Peak, Colo., while attending the summer session of the Aspen Center for Physics, which has established a memorial fund in his name.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Feb. 19, 1939, Heinz prepared for Princeton at Woodberry Forest. Majoring in physics at Princeton, Heinz wrote his senior thesis on the "Initial Value Problem in General Relativity," pursued his interest in modern literature, and joined Charter.

Heinz earned a doctorate in physics from Stanford in 1965, and joined Rockefeller Univ. He left in 1983 as an associate professor to become executive director and C.E.O. of the New York Academy of Sciences.

As president of the International League for Human Rights, Heinz pursued greater freedom for researchers in other countries. He was a fellow of the N.Y. Institute of the Humanities at N.Y.U., a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a trustee of the N.Y. Hall of Science, and a member of the Science and Law Committee of the N.Y. Bar Association.

In his books, which include THE COSMIC CODE (1982), PERFECT SYMMETRY (1985), and DREAMS OF REASON (1988), Heinz sought to explain to the public the content and excitement of the most modern developments of physics and cosmology.

Heinz is survived by his wife, the former Elaine Heisey, a religion professor at Princeton, and two children, Sarah and David. Other survivors include his mother, Marie Pagels, and his brother, Rolf. The Class extends its deepest sympathy to the family.

The Class of 1960