User:StrayBolt/Larry Shaw

Lawrence N. Shaw (August 12, 1939 – August 19, 2017) is an American physicist, curator, artist and founder of Pi Day. Larry Shaw worked at the Exploratorium for 33 years, performing just about every function for the museum. He was a key member of the arts and technology community and supportive of the San Francisco Bay Area organizations.

Early and personal life
Lawrence N. Shaw was born in Washington, D.C. on August 12, 1939 to Ida and Winfred Shaw. Larry's father worked for the Department of Agriculture. They moved to the Bay Area in California when he was a year-and-a-half toddler. He was a graduate of Pleasant Hill High School and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics in 1961 from Reed College in Portland, Oregon.

It was at Reed where he met his future wife, Catherine Adams. They were married in 1963 and had two daughters, now Dr. Tara Shaw in sports medicine, and Dr. Sara Shaw, a veterinarian. Larry and Catherine celebrated their wedding anniversary 54 times on the "full moon in June" and would have a "re-wedding" every seven years, because the "body has pretty much become new every seven years ".

Career
Before Larry Shaw started at the Exploratorium, he work in physics-related jobs at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the University of California, Berkeley, Space Sciences Laboratory.

Exploratorium
"You are the Exploratorium", the then-director said when "Technical Curator" Larry Shaw retired in 2005, after 33 years at the Exploratorium. He performed just about every function for the museum.

When Larry Shaw first hired at the Exploratorium in 1972 by the founder and director, Dr. Frank Oppenheimer said about a job title for Shaw, "You can put down anything you want except 'director.'" In the Feb. 7, 1994 cover story of MicroTimes, he said about his role as technical curator, "I have many hats. Basically, I am looking for technology that furthers the mission of the museum." He designed and built exhibits. He did engineering for the music and performing arts programs and worked with many of the Artists-in-Residence, technically supporting their efforts to extend their visions and turn their often-wild ideas into actual exhibits. For example, he helped design a series of hexagons that visitors would step, bounce and dance upon to create abstract music. He would also connect what visitors experienced, like an echo, with "whistlers" from electrical impulses in our atmosphere. In 2001, he worked with the Exploratorium's Center for Media and Communications to extend the museum's interactive learning environment with multi-media, video and telecommunications. The Exploratorium and Larry Shaw utilized STEAM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Art, Math) to help visitors understand the world, long before the STEAM (or STEM) acronym was used.

“He loved to help people realize they are capable, and that they can get involved in areas of human thought that they thought were closed to them,” said his wife. “That’s what the Exploratorium stands for, too.”

Pi Day
Larry Shaw, the "Prince of Pi", invented the holiday Pi Day in 1988 while at the Exploratorium. During an off-site staff retreat in 1988, he started talking with his co-workers, like Ron Hipschman, about the mysteries of mathematical constants. Shaw came up with the idea to link pi (3.14159…), which begins with 3.14, with the date 3/14 or March 14. Co-workers built on the idea and they had a mini-celebration with just the staff, starting with a march and eating of pies. The next year, the holiday was held for all at the museum and every year since, even when the museum was closed during the move. The celebration includes a parade at 1:59 p.m. with visitors holding a sign with a digit of pi, a pi shrine, eating of pies (fruit and pizza), singing happy birthday to Albert Einstein, and more. Larry Shaw would lead the parade in his red cap with the digits of pi. Pi Day was recognized as a national holiday in 2009 and is internationally celebrated. Also, 2015 was a special year with it being written 3/14/15, calling it "Pi Day of the Century". Shaw felt the best part of Pi Day was making math more accessible, fun for those who may have had problems in school.

Art and music
In addition to helping the Artist-in-residence and others at the Exploratorium, he contributed to and supported the arts and technology community.

He was a core member of YLEM: Artists Using Science & Technology For the CyberArts X 10th Anniversary & YLEM 20th Anniversary, he was key for the on-line aspect of the event. At the YLEM Exhibition in December, 2001, he showed his piece, "SF Fog, 1967", which "combined the friendly image of the Golden Gate Bridge dissolving in a whirling fractal fog in his digital collage".

He helped put on events related to computer graphics for the local chapters of ACM SIGGRAPH, both the Bay Area ACM SIGGRAPH and later the San Francisco ACM SIGGRAPH chapter. He was also involved at the international level being on the SIGGRAPH 1987 Art Show jury and committee with the conference at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Larry Shaw was called the “GodFather” of the San Francisco Robotics Society of America (SFRSA). SFRSA Mediameister Cliff Thompson said in a 2001 tribute, "Seemingly hardly known & working deftly behind the scenes, Larry has over the years been at the engineering epi-center of more profoundly transformative technological, scientific & cultural experiences than anyone I know."

He also composed and performed electronic music (The Coagulation of Time) and made electronic harmoniums.

After retiring, he had more time pursuing his artistic passion of turning his photos into beautiful abstractions. He continued volunteering as an audio engineer for non-profits.

Buddhism
Larry Shaw has visited and studied at Buddhist sites all over the world. He and his family joined the Buddhist Temple of Marin in 1985. He served several terms as president. "He was a true bodhisattva, always willing and able to help all in need, and to share his knowledge and insights. All who knew him attest to his extreme good cheer, contagious enthusiasm, amazing range of interests, seemingly in-exhaustible energy, and genuine, unforced loving regard toward everyone."

Death and Legacy
Larry Shaw died August 19, 2017 at the age 78 in a Petaluma assisted-living residence from complications of Alzheimer’s disease.

"A Buddhist memorial service will be held in late September, and a secular celebration of life in early November. " Published in Marin Independent Journal from Sept. 15 to Sept. 17, 2017" http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/marinij/obituary.aspx?pid=186667752

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Buddhist Temple of Marin at 390 Miller Ave., Mill Valley. Pie will be served. " https://www.pressreader.com/usa/san-francisco-chronicle/20170920/282316795216174 https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Memorial-service-set-for-Pi-Day-creator-Larry-Shaw-12206726.php (pictures)

http://www.marinij.com/article/ZZ/20080618/NEWS/806189971

http://www.reed.edu/reed-magazine/in-memoriam/obituaries/2018/larry-shaw-1961.html writing his thesis on negative wire corona with his adviser, Prof. Jean Delord Exploratorium staff members often commented on the importance of Larry’s mentorship to their professional development, and on his cheerful, welcoming, demeanor when they first started at the museum. “He loved to help people realize they are capable, and that they can get involved in areas of human thought that they thought were closed to them,” Catherine said.