John Hartley Brodie, a theoretical physicist, drowned in an accident Jan. 28, 2006, near Brattleboro, Vt.
Brodie received bachelor's and master's degrees from Cornell in physics. In the year following, he traveled around the world, mainly in the Far East, where he developed an interest in Eastern philosophies and religions. He returned to doctoral studies in theoretical physics at Princeton and went on to do research in string theory, first at the Stanford linear accelerator and then at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Canada.
In 2004, Brodie took a leave of absence from research and publication in disciplinary journals to teach at the Monteverde Friends School in Costa Rica. Traveling to Nicaragua, he helped construct housing for the poor with Habitat for Humanity. Over the years, he became an environmental advocate, a strict vegetarian, and an antiwar activist.
Brodie is survived by his parents, Harry and Angela Brodie, and his brother, Mark.