John D. Hunter ’90

John Hunter, loving father, devoted husband, caring son, and generous friend, died from cancer, Aug. 28, 2012. He was 44.

John was raised in Dyersburg, Tenn. After Princeton, he earned a Ph.D. in neurobiology in 2004 from the University of Chicago.

John was most proud of his three daughters, Rahel, Ava, and Clara. He was their soccer coach, swim teacher, choir fan, and debate partner. John, his wife, Miriam, and their girls were beloved members of Chicago’s Hyde Park community.

John’s doctoral research advanced the understanding of timing in the neural code. He pioneered the Python open-source computer language, best known for creating matplotlib, widely used programs for scientific graphics.

John was especially proud when matplotlib ensured the safe landing of Rover on Mars in 2004. John taught Python workshops and discussed programming advances at international scientific meetings. In the last six years, John took his quantitative modeling skills to the financial industry, working for Tradelink, an investment firm in Chicago.

John is survived by his wife and daughters; his mother and stepfather, Sara and Joe Wolfe; his grandmother; sisters; and stepsisters. A fund for the education of his daughters has been established at http://numfocus.org/johnhunter.