John-Nash-Obituary

John Nash

1928 - 2015 (Age 86)

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AGE
86

Obituary

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — John Forbes Nash Jr., a mathematical genius whose struggle with schizophrenia was chronicled in the 2001 movie "A Beautiful Mind," has died along with his wife in a car crash on the New Jersey Turnpike. He was 86.

Nash and Alicia Nash, 82, of Princeton Township, were killed in a taxi crash Saturday, state police said. A colleague who had received an award with Nash in Norway earlier in the week said they had just flown home and the couple had taken a cab home from the airport.

Russell Crowe, who portrayed Nash in "A Beautiful Mind," tweeted that he was "stunned."

"An amazing partnership," he wrote. "Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts."

In a statement Sunday, his co-star in the film, Jennifer Connelly, called the couple "an inspiration," and the film's director, Ron Howard, tweeted that "it was an honor telling part of their story."

Known as brilliant and eccentric, Nash was associated with Princeton University for many years, most recently serving as a senior research mathematician. He won the Nobel Prize in economics in 1994 for his work in game theory, which offered insight into the dynamics of human rivalry. It is considered one of the most influential ideas of the 20th century.

Just a few days ago, Nash had received a prize from the Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters in Oslo with New York University mathematician Louis Nirenberg, who said he'd chatted with the couple for an hour at the airport in Newark before they'd gotten a cab. Nirenberg said Nash was a truly great mathematician and "a kind of genius."

Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber said the Nashes were special members of the university community.

"John's remarkable achievements inspired generations of mathematicians, economists and scientists who were influenced by his brilliant, groundbreaking work in game theory, and the story of his life with Alicia moved millions of readers and moviegoers who marveled at their courage in the face of daunting challenges," Eisgruber said in a statement.

New Jersey State Police say the Nashes were both ejected from the cab in the crash around 4:30 p.m. Saturday in Monroe Township, about 15 miles northeast of Trenton. The cab driver was hospitalized.

News of the deaths was shocking to Nirenberg.

"We were all so happy together," Nirenberg said. "It seemed like a dream."

John David Stier, Nash's son with his first wife, said he learned of the death Sunday morning. "It's very upsetting," he said.

In an autobiography written for The Nobel Foundation website, Nash said delusions caused him to resign as a faculty member at MIT. He also spent several months in New Jersey hospitals on an involuntary basis.

However, Nash's schizophrenia diminished through the 1970s and 1980s as he "gradually began to intellectually reject some of the delusionally influenced lines of thinking," he wrote.

The 2001 film "A Beautiful Mind" won four Oscars, including best picture and best director, and generated interest in John Nash's life story. The movie was based on an unauthorized biography by Sylvia Nasar, who wrote that Nash's contemporaries found him "immensely strange" and "slightly cold, a bit superior, somewhat secretive."

Much of his demeanor likely stemmed from mental illness, which began emerging in 1959 when Alicia was pregnant with a son. The film, though, did not mention Nash older son or to the years that he and Alicia spent living together after divorcing. The couple split in 1963, then resumed living together several years later and finally remarried in 2001.

Born in Bluefield, W. Va., to an electrical engineer and a housewife, Nash had read the classic "Men of Mathematics" by E.T. Bell by the time he was in high school. He planned to follow in his father's footsteps and studied for three years at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh (now Carnegie Mellon University), but instead developed a passion for mathematics.

He then went to Princeton, where he worked on his equilibrium theory and, in 1950, received his doctorate with a dissertation on non-cooperative games. The thesis contained the definition and properties of what would later be called the Nash equilibrium.

Nash then taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for several years and held a research post at Brandeis University before eventually returning to Princeton.

Associated Press writer Geoff Mulvihill in Trenton contributed to this report.

BRUCE SHIPKOWSKI
Associated Press Writer


Copyright © 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Guest Book

Not sure what to say?

I just watched "A beautiful Mind" and immediately went to the computer to search for Dr Nash. Totally heartbroken to know he and wife died a year ago-I was hoping to learn he was still continuing his work. What a life, struggles and strength they both had-both beautiful people. My gratitude for sharing your life with all.



THANKYOU SIR ... R.I.P
MRS NASH ... MAY YOU AND YOUR HUSBAND REST IN PEACE ... PRAYERS +

What a tremendous loss! I speak of Dr. Nash in my psychology classes here at The University of Dayton. He was and still is an inspiration to those who suffer with the illness of Schizophrenia. He demonstrated so eloquently that one is not defined by one's mental illness. His perseverance despite this illness will always profoundly move and inspire me. What a gift he was to so many! May he and his beloved wife Alicia rest in God's eternal peace and joy!

Requiescat in Pace

R.I.P John and Alicia Nash. God Bless you both and may he keep you close to his throne and his heart. Requiescat in Pace.

Our prayers that the Nashes rest in peace & the family find strength at this tragic loss . People with a Beautiful mind make the world beautiful Only if we all take the time to see !
The Mahida family , Oakdale

RIP John Nash and Alicia Nash

All the balloons floating in the sky, how I wish they were all mine. I would float in the sky with all the balloons; in the snow, the rain and the sun. But it's a dream. The balloons don't come.

God bless you John.

John Nash shared an incredible life story to the world as portrayed in "Beautiful Mind." His long term struggle and mastery over his illness was indeed an extraordinary feat. He will be fondly remembered for ALL his accomplishments. I join his family in longing for the time whereby sickness and death will be no more; it has been promised. My condolences!