Analog expert Bob Pease dies in accident

6/20/2011 8:48 AM EDT

Wow... another huge loss for the community. RIP.

6/20/2011 9:19 AM EDT

Ooh my, this is bad, really bad and what a terrible coincidence this should happen when he was at jim's service.

It's seems a bad tide for NS, two great leaders in their domain gone within a span of a week.

6/20/2011 9:47 AM EDT

This is tough to believe.I don't want to believe it. Such a tragic loss.

I have an email from Pease dated Saturday @ 5 PM. How can this be true?

From: Robert Pease
Date: 06/18/11 05:05:08

I worked for him as a kid at Philbrick on band gap reference development.

The impact this guy had on me as a kid are deeply ingrained.

He was bigger than life,untamed, invincible, an analog hero. An icon. A showman. A Czar.

They came from around the world to see him. His office, his breadboards,It was non stop fun and excitement.

Then he calls us to an awards meeting. I was only 19. He gives the new CEO the triple humper award.He pulls a three cup bra from a shopping cart. I was in awe.Incredible entertainment.Justice served. Under the first cup a V/$ converter. Under the third cup a F/$ converter. I thought this was the most incredible event I had ever witnessed.Until he unveils the third cup contents. He reaches into his pants and pulls out his letter of resigation. He quit,efffective immediately to go to National. I was in shock! Betrayed.When he left there was a vacuum.I feel it again.

I feel so fortunate I was able to experience him, and so many other talented and interesting people in the industry.

He will be missed by all.

Ralph

6/20/2011 9:58 AM EDT

This is another great loss. His column in Electroinc Design was my favourite. I also have his book with all hand drawn sketch. He will be missed by so many EEs. RIP.

6/20/2011 10:24 AM EDT

Another tragic loss to the engineering community and world.

6/20/2011 10:59 AM EDT

Bob, you will be missed by many I am sure! While I was not an analog designer, I thoroughly enjoyed reading his columns and following his adventures. The world is a poorer place with him gone.

6/20/2011 12:54 PM EDT

Rest in peace. I am very sorry for the loss to his family and the Analog electronics community.


jigish shukla
www.knownfo.com

6/20/2011 1:21 PM EDT

Wow two in a row. These guys were outstanding and now there gone. RIP.

6/20/2011 1:47 PM EDT

This has been one of the most tragic weeks in
analog history.

Truly a loss of truly good people.

Jerry Steele

6/20/2011 1:57 PM EDT

What's this about Bob Pease dying, anyhow?

Never met the man, but with every issue of ED that came in, I would instantly go to the last page to read his column. I'll miss reading his writing...

A very sad day...

mce

6/20/2011 2:07 PM EDT

WOW:
Another good intuitive analog designer gone.
I was at one of his seminars over 10yrs ago and I knew he knew what he was talking about; a bit crazy sometimes but always a lot of fun.
Read all of his articles.
Always interesting how he would draw his schematics.
I bet he would have made a great instructor.
RIP

6/20/2011 2:47 PM EDT

RIP RAP

6/20/2011 3:18 PM EDT

I, too, never met Bob, but felt that I've known him for many years as a fellow Engineer and VW Beetle appreciator.

I always headed for his column first when a new issue appeared on my desk. His Engineering prowess and his practical approach to life will be greatly missed.

6/20/2011 3:21 PM EDT

I have admired both men through my career. For many years I have enjoyed Bob's column. What a loss.

6/20/2011 3:23 PM EDT

How sad
RIP

6/20/2011 3:24 PM EDT

During my days at National, I sat in a number of meetings with Bob. We had agreements and disagreements, but they were all entertaining and informing. It is a shock to find him gone, and a shame to see the Mercury News refer to Pease as an "elderly" man; they never knew his youthful, agile and rebellious mind.

6/20/2011 3:30 PM EDT

Our condolences and prayers to their families.

There should be a proper way to honor these two icons in a manner befitting their stature in the community.

A void in the engineering continuum has been created that will be very difficult to fill if that is even possible.

6/20/2011 3:31 PM EDT

About 8-10 years ago I registered with the NatSemi road show in north Denver. I arrived late, and the house was packed with ~300 engineers. The only seat left was directly in front of Bob and his overhead projector. He had a 4" high pile of overlays, which he called his "analog Powerpoint". He went rapid fire through the first dozen, with each one explaining why digital electronics was becoming superior to analog. He ended his introduction with the overlay which said: "I just don't like to do it!" What an experience! Carl Ellison

6/20/2011 3:44 PM EDT

This is unbelievable that two world famous Analog Engineers die within a week of each other! This is a great loss to the Engineering profession. I knew Bob Pease for many years and read his articles and saw his videos. He was a bit cranky about Spice (trust but verify on the bench) and was a solid troubleshooter and wrote books on the subject. He and Jim Williams were Analog Wizards of Silicon Valley for a many years. Both of these great Analog Engineers have now moved onto the Great Analog Plane in the sky. Bob and Jim will be missed by many people and many Analog Engineers and Designers will mourn his passing.

RIP Bob and Jim

Rich Commins
R&D Design Engineer (35 years)

6/20/2011 3:49 PM EDT

In a recent column, the beloved Bob Pease urged us to learn from his bout with adult-onset diabetes. He made specific recommendations about dietary changes, which would have kept him from that dreaded disease.

With deepest respect for Bob, and in the spirit of that recent column, I humbly note that his seat belt wasn't secured this time. Just yesterday I drove a half-block before securing mine. That's the last time I let that happen.

Finally, I will always celebrate his legendary critique of the Taguchi method.

6/20/2011 3:51 PM EDT

Interesting. Sounds like quite a rebel. No Spice. No powerpoint. And sadly, no seatbelts..

6/20/2011 3:51 PM EDT

I loved Pease's folky ornery style in his columns. He never questioned anything unless he had the facts to back it up. That taught us never to take things for granted or to accept progress as "progress". And I always loved seeing something in analog design that I didn't learn in college. With Widlar, Williams, and now Pease gone the industry has lost some true greats. RIP RAP.

6/20/2011 3:57 PM EDT

Both of these men have had a profound effect on people they have never met. Their loss can not be imagined, and many are stunned by their passing.

I have never had a chance to meet either man, Bob or Jim, but they enriched my life as they have many others. We all learned a great deal from them.

To Bob Pease's family, my deepest sympathy and best wishes. He is still an important influence for all of us. Thousands of people join you in mourning his passing. Please know that Bob is deeply important and respected, and we are all truly sorry.

6/20/2011 3:58 PM EDT

I had the pleasure of attending a seminar about a decade ago that had Bob Pease as the featured guest. I had been an avid reader of his columns for almost a decade prior to that. From the way he eased through highly technical concepts with no more than simple blackboard jottings, you immediately got a sense of the incredible intuition he possessed. This is a very tragic loss, and I extend my deepest sympathy to his family.

"Pease Porridge" was the true organic food of the analog world.

RIP

6/20/2011 4:00 PM EDT

Hopefully, both Jim and Bob's work has been captured and published as foundational reference material...

6/20/2011 4:04 PM EDT

This is an unbelievable tragedy.
I am an Aussie engineer in Melbourne and was planning to meet both Bob and Jim in mid-July.
Bob and I were in regular email correspondence.
He was generous and good-humoured in his advice
and I am most upset at both these two tragedies
in such close succession.

6/20/2011 4:16 PM EDT

This is a very tragic loss, and I extend my deepest sympathy to his family.

6/20/2011 4:26 PM EDT

Bob, It is just like yesterday night you were chatting with me in NS's Building C...

Jim, you are one of the nice fine gentleman.

Here I thank and appreciate for both of your helping me to grow in my junior years.

RIP. you both have done a great job leading us in the Analog World.

6/20/2011 4:29 PM EDT

How many times to they tell you to click it?

6/20/2011 4:38 PM EDT

I had the great pleasure of meeting Jim Williams (and Bob Dobkin) when they visited my employer (a large automotive company) back in the 80s.

Also, a NSC field sales person had (phone) introduced me to Bob Pease and we had communicated a bit - he shared his 'dead car' list with me. He and I were to meet, but... . ....

TomC

6/20/2011 5:04 PM EDT

What a tragedy. I only met Bob once, at a conference in the 90s where he was the featured speaker. Bob had a special talent for being informative and humorous at the same time.

He graciously signed my copy of of his book Troubleshooting Analog Circuits, and added some words of wisdom that always gave me a chuckle when I opened that book.

RIP Bob, you will be greatly missed.

6/20/2011 5:06 PM EDT

I read his work for years, and had the pleasure of meeting him once at a vendor's seminar. Probably used his chips many times.

6/20/2011 5:16 PM EDT

When I worked at NSC, I remember walking with Bob Pease in the parking lot, asking him why he still drove that old beetle, it was not safe, no air bag. YOU WONT BELIEVE IT! I then asked him what if he hit a tree? His reply "I don't plan to". He shut me up fast. I wish he did have a modern car, even if it was a beetle. It could have saved his life since he was not wearing a seat belt (cause 1969 cars did not have them). I also remember seeing his "cubicle" and laughed at how he had "plots" of chip layouts, all over, and sat on them making an impression of his body on them. It was so funny to see. Lots of patent plaques all over. There was this story of him throwing a computer off the roof of Bldg C. Computers don't compute, he hated SPICE for some reason. He will be missed. I think he was a mad scientist! I loved him. - RAJAT SEWAL

6/20/2011 5:22 PM EDT

I never had the honor of meeting either Bob Pease or Jim Williams, but I knew them by reputation. It's a tremendous loss. I can't wrap my mind around the tragic irony that Pease died on the way home a memorial service for Williams. It is like some sort of sick, twisted cosmic joke. May they both rest in peace. The world would not have been the same if not for their contributions.

6/20/2011 5:28 PM EDT

"sadly, no seat belts"
"How many times to they tell you to click it?"

He was driving a '69 VW Beetle! How would seat belts help? He was so proud of driving an unsafe car. And of driving unsafely: "whats all this driving one-handed stuff". How ironic that he had written about how not to drive into an accident.

I'm gonna miss him! A lot!
But really: a 69 Beetle?

6/20/2011 5:33 PM EDT

Between analog & digital a transformation,
Pease and Williams, much more than an analog generation,
Rest in peace and strength to everyone around you,

From somewhere else on the globe, the noise and drift in Knopfler's Bros " Brother's in arms" is in time close to your delta leaving us.

Thanks both of you,

6/20/2011 5:36 PM EDT

And I was just getting ready to send him a couple of 0.033" carbide ckt bd drills. Anyone else need 'em. I don't do boards any more.
qwester

6/20/2011 5:43 PM EDT

I remember when I was studying I read some of Bob Pease's columns. Didn't catch much but I knew him since. I'm impressed with this tragedy.
RIP Bob.

6/20/2011 5:51 PM EDT

Just wanted to add the best one on http://www.youtube.com see The Brothers in arms Mandela live 1988, feeling best here.

Coorection: Thanks a lot, both of you.

Alain.L.V

6/20/2011 5:59 PM EDT

WOW,
this saddens me,

One little anetdote.
a few years ago, I emailed bob a question and a few thoughts.

amazingly, he replied and we had a few emails back and forth for a few weeks.

I felt humbled that such a man would spend time and seem to enjoy talking to a low-level me.

BOB, we will miss you.

6/20/2011 6:17 PM EDT

I worked at NSC in the 80's as technician and I remember towards the end of the year Bob would display a handwritten list of all the dead cars he would pass on his commute. He included the year make and model on most cars. Nobody quite figured out how he got all that info by just a quick pass of a stranded car. How about Bob's filing system; I recall in an answer to my question, Bob shuffled between the stacks of paper in his cubicle, counted over 3 piles, fingered down about halfway of a 5 foot high stack, hesitated for a second and then plucked the paper of interest. How did he do that? In my copy of "Troubleshooting Analog Circuits" Bob wrote, "Mike, may all your troubles be Middle-sized, so you can find them! RAP"

RIP Bob.

Mike Mottola

6/20/2011 6:35 PM EDT

RIP
This is a tragig loss
Bob you will be greatly missed

6/20/2011 6:42 PM EDT

I wonder if the car's brakes or steering could have malfunctioned?

My condolences to his family and close friends.
May he rest in peace.

6/20/2011 6:59 PM EDT

Great loss to the engineering world
RIP

6/20/2011 7:03 PM EDT

Bob Pesa was Bob Pesa, he was unique, I met him a few times, I enjoyed it all the time... fare well Bob

6/20/2011 7:10 PM EDT

This is unbelievable, I did a double take when I saw the news flash on my inbox today, I thought it was another story about Jim Williams.

I never met either of them but I have read many of their articles and app notes. These guys were truly analog geniuses who left an indelible mark on the craft. It is hard to imagine anyone coming close to replacing them in the analog community.

I guess analog is now truely dead...

6/20/2011 7:50 PM EDT

Such a sad day. Nobody will ever be able to take the place of Bob Pease. He was a genius, an eccentric, and a kind-hearted man.

A few years back, I was looking all over (the internet) trying to find a good explanation of the operation of a magneto ingition system... there were bits and pieces, but nothing 100% satisfacty. Then I walked over and asked Bob -- of course he knew exactly how it worked, and of course he explained it perfectly!

You will be missed and remembered always, Bob.

6/20/2011 8:50 PM EDT

Wow. My prayers go out to his family. I'm still in disbelief. I loved reading his articles. I have a book signed from him. And I met him in real life! I live in Vancouver, Canada and I'm a digital designer! I "never" fully grasp all the concepts in analog but really appreciated his passion and depth of understanding in his work. A real guru.

RIP Bob.

6/20/2011 9:09 PM EDT

RIP Bob.

6/20/2011 9:09 PM EDT

Another terrible loss. Several years ago I had the pleasure of hearing Bob as a guest speaker and had a few brief words with him after wards. He had such a great sense of humour and practicality as well as analog expertise. He will be missed.

6/20/2011 9:13 PM EDT

Bob has contributed so much to the analogue design community and will be greatly missed. His legacy of inspired designers and better design practices will endure long into the future.

Thankyou for living a bigger life Bob, we are all better because of you

Ray Keefe

6/20/2011 10:30 PM EDT

As a fellow MIT classmate of Bob, we spent time together as members of the newly formed MIT cycling team, back in the late 50s. This goes way back before Bob's successes in his professional life. What a sad way to end a wonderful and productive career. I followed his articles under the byline of Pease Porridge for many years. He has left a great legacy and will be sadly missed by many.

Tom Thiele

6/20/2011 10:31 PM EDT

What a sad loss. I worked with Bob at Philbrick up until a couple months before his rather dramatic departure, described above. I wish I'd been there to see that.

We were both interested in automotive topics, and we regularly corresponded over the years. His "Pease-O-Grams", overstuffed envelopes full of clippings and random notes, would arrive several times a year. Once we both had email, the communications switched to there. He sent me an email about his latest column, the solo hiking one, just hours before he passed.

He signed me on to help edit his driving book, emailing me chapters for comments as he produced them. Some of his ideas were a little strange, and I'd question him on them. But he always had a ready explanation of his logic. He was kind enough to mention me in the foreword of the book, much to my surprise.

Thinking back on his driving book, I'm kind of surprised that he didn't have a seat belt on. I'm sure we can all speculate on the scenario, undoing the seatbelt for a moment to get something out of a pocket, like we've all done, then getting distracted for a moment on a twisty road... or a sudden medical issue... We'll never know for sure.

RIP, Bob, you were one of a kind.

Stu Brennan

6/20/2011 10:34 PM EDT

It's just unbelievable.. Both of you guys will be missed a lot. RIP

6/20/2011 10:38 PM EDT

Another great teacher, mentor lost in a weeks time. huge loss.

He left a great legacy of great design and critical thinking.

You will be missed.

- Neel

6/20/2011 10:38 PM EDT

I was shocked as well to read Bob's passing. As a component engineer, I had recently been unemployed for a bit, and one day while looking for work and googling "component engineer", I came across one of Bob's columns, "What’s All This Components Engineer Stuff, Anyhow?" Well of course I always enjoyed his What's All This Stuff type columns, and being a component engineer, it was doubly of interest, so I read it! Then I decided to send him an email, saying how I enjoyed his column, and also mentioning that if he knew of any jobs in the area...well, I'd be all ears! I was surprised when he responded. He said he would keep his eyes peeled. This kind reply initiated a string of emails on subjects such as trekking, technology, and low thermal drift resistors. A conversation might go:

Me: "But as far as interesting times go, it is amazing the technology one can buy in a computer now. 1 Terabyte drives, who would have thought it? Gigahertz multicore processors, and they keep pushing the limits on semiconductor to ever smaller line-widths."


Bob:" ** Yeah, but I can still only type at 30 - 60 words per minute! I wish the damn things would run slower and use less battery power!"

It was this kind of humor, which also permeated his columns, that lightened up many an engineer's day every month. No matter where you were in your project, or what your boss was mumbling as he shuffled by your cube, Bob's column was a little oasis of peace, good engineering, pillorying of dubious methodologies du jour, and plain 'ol fun.

I'm sure there are many like myself, who though we realized that we were nowhere near his level of analog expertise, it was still encouraging to know that at least somebody could do it (as the mathematician says,"a solution exists")! And it encouraged us to delve into and enjoy the subject.

May Bob and Jim rest in peace. And may we all one day enjoy that trek together through the next life.

6/20/2011 11:20 PM EDT

It's hard to add to what is already here. I never met Bob, but like most of you, I always read his articles. It was too soon. RIP.

6/20/2011 11:48 PM EDT

I was saddened to hear of Bob's death. He was a major piece of National history.

I had one involvement with Bob and that was when our Audio Product Line at National undertook to make the best audio related performance parts, now known as the LME series. We boasted that the "E" was for Excellence, Excellent, Excels, and any other term we could think of to Extoll (no pun intended) the virtues of the series. They are the best of their type of part on the market today.

Bob got wind of the project and basically stated that he doubted we could pull it off, and challenged us by threatening to do his own 'independent' analysis of the first part when it came out of fab. Well the part came out and he was on our Apps lab's doorstep ready to give it a thorough going over.

I don't remember exactly how long he took to do his analysis, but he finally came back and told us the part met our expectation and specs, and if anything, was somewhat conservatively rated. Now even within National, you can imagine how happy that made our group's design engineers and applications staff (who were key players in the specification and definition)feel. To get his blessing on the part was really wonderful.

I also had the opportunity to be at, as well as present at, National and NS distributor sponsored events where Bob also presented. I can tell you Bob's presence at the event was the MAIN reason engineers attended. It was not just his presentation style (including his famous blank overhead projector film presentation media), but also his in depth knowledge of the subject and his way of keeping the audience engaged during the process.

All of us in the industry have at one time or another had the opportunity to work with or otherwise be involved with industry giants. I have been fortunate to do so at National as well as at Intel. Others may be looking at you right now with some of the same kind of awe. It always pays to Excel (darn...there I go with the E's again)in your profession.

6/21/2011 2:44 AM EDT

What a loss - I never met the guy or heard him speak, but he was and will always remain an inspiration to me.

WilliamWM

6/21/2011 3:18 AM EDT

Very sad, a great loss to the industry. I have a shared interest in trekking and the Himalayas, and we discussed by email my designs for the power system for basecamp on Medex expeditions. I'm pleased to say I did get the chance to meet him in 1998, while he was watching a game of netball between his fellow trekkers and their sherpas in a small village on route to Kangenjunga base camp, and he was able to use our satellite phone to ring home. R.I.P. RAP. Denzil

6/21/2011 3:29 AM EDT

Very sad the end of life is a tragedy for every one concerned and how it will happen is not pre informed. This kind of end is very difficult to digest. His soul be in peace

6/21/2011 3:31 AM EDT

A wonderful teacher he was and a great soul. RIP Bob, the porridge wouldn't taste the same

6/21/2011 4:07 AM EDT

I spent an afternoon with him walking around Copenhagen drinking beer and chatting about everything under the sun, he was as nutty as a fruit cake, great sense of humour and fun, a lovely man .... a genius. He will be greatly missed.

6/21/2011 4:42 AM EDT

If a measure of a person's worth is the impact on those left behind then Bob Pease was a diamond and we are all saddened by the news of his passing.
He made electronics fun for goodness sake! - and maybe reminded us all why we came into the business in the first place.
Sadly missed...

6/21/2011 5:11 AM EDT

A big loss to the analog world. RIP Bob

6/21/2011 5:30 AM EDT

What a loss to the engineering community! Condolences to his family and close friends. Life is 100% fatal. The question we all need to ask is "Am I ready to die?"
www.livingwaters.com/good

6/21/2011 8:44 AM EDT

Had the opportunity to meet Bob few years ago. He was an endless source of fun, excitement and challenge to overcome all midsized problems. Will be trully missed. RIP RAP.

6/21/2011 10:58 AM EDT

Elderly?? Must be some other Bob Pease!!

I didn't have the opportunity to meet or hear Bob, but I read everything he wrote. He had an opinion on just about everything and it was accurate, if just a bit unconventional at times. You will be sorely missed, my friend. Trek on...no more altitude, no more blisters, no more cold toes.

All for now./Comments invited!
RIP RAP 73 Ed K6ESS Tucson AZ

6/21/2011 12:44 PM EDT

Bob Pease was a good friend to me, helped me a lot during my engineering career. He once wrote me a nice letter about how he developed the linear regulators, why the "paddle" part of the TO-220 packages was connected to different pins of the circuit, depending on the device.

I think he said his No. 2 pencil was his circuit simulator. He would draw his schematics so each point of the circuit was at the "correct" voltage level on the paper with respect to all the other parts, sometimes the components were pointed in odd directions to achieve this. The inverting input resistors of inverting op amps were near the top of the page with a +input voltage, and the output resistor was pointing down to the bottom of the page to show the inverted output signal, that sort of thing.

I reviewed some of Bob's books, either for Audio Amateur or for Newnes-Elsevier books, his publisher. I had him sign all his books for me whenever I went to one of his lectures. I also got in touch with him to help clear the way for Audio Amateur to republish the National Semi Audio/Radio Handbook 1980 edition. Bob used to hand them out as prizes at his lectures.

It was ironic that Bob was killed in a car crash Saturday after leaving a private service for Jim Williams. Bob wrote many articles and a book about not driving into an accident.

6/21/2011 12:52 PM EDT

In our ANALOG world, as Bob knew, although the sun sets, the sun also rises... linearly! Although a dark night was upon us, new, young minds will brighten these eternal mornings... lighting the way of the future for tomorrow's wizards.

6/21/2011 1:11 PM EDT

I had the pleasure of working with both Bob and Jim when I was at National. Bob was a master of linear design - nobody argued that point. His sense of fun was what left the most indelible impression.

Jim was also a god of linear design, but he was a practical, no-nonsense type.

Both were inspirations. Both will be sorely missed.

Jim Handy

6/21/2011 1:36 PM EDT

I am not able to believe that this has really happened. The other day while reading through the sad news about the unexpected demise of Jim, I was very sorry, but still thinking that we have at least another analog legend: Bob Pease. Though I have not met him, but I read many of his columns and attended many webinars. The ease with which he used to explain complex analog issues (specially the op-amp series) and his unique style with full of energies used to enunciate his experience and command on the subject. We will miss him.

6/21/2011 2:46 PM EDT

Bob's dedication to the analog art is completely true in my experience...I interfaced with him several times over the last 25 years and he was always helpful...grumpy and direct, but always helpful. Six months ago...I was at a loss to solve a simple problem and I had no one else to talk to. Now, get this, I work for one of National's competitors! And, he was still willing to help me. Here's part of our interchange:

KLC: It's hard for me to believe there is a loading problem with 7mA, but it will be a few days before I can test this on a bench myself.
I looked through your troubleshooting book, but nothing caught my eye.

RAP: *** That may be because I only told how to Troubleshoot good designs?

KLC: The paper you wrote looks very interesting...I've read it quickly and will take a little more time with it tomorrow.
Yes, I believe my Tek scope will do an XY plot.

RAP: *** Well look at your Vout ( near + 750 mv) and put in 0 + 1 to - 7 ma through 1k. If the output moves - well, it shouldn't.

KLC: You're kind to make an effort to help me. How do people reward you for this dedication to your craft?

RAP: *** You can buy me a couple beers some day, if I can help you.
More later. / Beast regrds. / rap

Okay. Now we're never going to share that beer. I can't believe he's gone. This is a body blow.
- KLC

6/21/2011 4:41 PM EDT

RAP and Jim Williams in so short a period! I had corresponded with RAP a few times over the years, and eagerly awaited anything from Jim to get printed. Now I know God needs analog designs!!
- PasadenaDave

6/21/2011 7:51 PM EDT

Although I never met Bob Pease, I got to know his stature as a human being by reading his Porridges. His columns might be gone, but the analog inspiration will be ours forever.

My condolences to his family and friends.

equATE

6/21/2011 11:20 PM EDT

Oh man, I cried twice.

Once for each man.

6/22/2011 12:11 AM EDT

Over decades I learnt many things from his presentations/articles. He has possible inspired many engineers to think analog. Condolences to his family, friends and analog community.

6/22/2011 1:54 AM EDT

www.DiligentMinds.com

This is so sad! Over the years, I have learned a lot from Bob's insight, and have enjoyed his sense of humor. We will all miss him very much. My condolences to his family. R.I.P. Bob!

-Ken Peek
.

6/22/2011 3:02 AM EDT

I am very sad to learn of Bob’s passing, it is really hard to believe. I enjoyed reading his articles so much; they were so inspirational and encouraging and always the first page I would turn to. Even if you never picked up a soldering iron, you could learn so much from following Bob’s approach to understand the fundamentals of any problem. There are so very few of us with this talent and fewer still with the ability to express it.

Bob will be sorely missed by all of us, but most of all by his family and friends, to whom I offer my condolences. R.I.P. Bob.

//Shay

6/22/2011 4:36 AM EDT

Bob was inspiration personified for me as young engineer learning analog electronics. Apart from hid legendary analog skills, he was a fine communicator. The entire electronic engineering community will miss his knowledge, wit and wisdom.

Rajendra Dave

6/22/2011 5:08 AM EDT

I never met him but I have great respect to him.His articles on Analog world is amazing.We miss alot. RIP Bob.

~Sudarshan

6/22/2011 11:11 AM EDT

I worked with Bob/RAP when I was a Sr. FAE for NSC in the 80's in Tempe, AZ.
His analog ability was a great basis for my analog designs and a inspiration for new methods that I used to this day.
I am shock! I will miss him, and his humor.

6/22/2011 12:41 PM EDT

With great admiration for both gentle souls, may they Rest In Peace, both were great role models and examples of humility. The EE community will missed them both.
Although I only was able to read and admire Jim Williams from printed material, his expertise was self evident in the many App.Notes that he wrote for LTC, and his affinity to restore Tek scopes, which I have practiced and enjoyed too.
For RAP I feel a special connection, I read and followed Bob’s writing throughout the years, and had the pleasure to meet Bob Pease at several National Seminars, and like many stated in this blog already.
He never tired to dispense advice, shake your hand and sign books with this famous quote “May your TROUBLES be middle-sized so that you can find them”.
I am very sadden to come to the realization that his great maverick soul, chose to ride on the wild side and was well aware that in order to feel “the road and the torque of his beloved car” it put him in harm way. My hope is for both lives continue to inspire analog designers in future generations.

6/22/2011 1:11 PM EDT

He was not wearing seat belt.

6/22/2011 2:00 PM EDT

One of my mentors, a role model and influence on my choice of career died the other day.

When I was in high school, as an engineer with National Semiconductor, he gladly supplied my friends and I with state-of-the-art electronic parts to experiment with - some of which would have cost many hundreds of dollars (far above our means).

My interest in analog and RF design engineering is partly due to his generosity and encouragement.

As a professional I realized we shared a passion for elegance and efficiency in design, and most importantly I think, the sense that electronic design was no different than other design disciplines in that it was fundamentally an art.

I will miss his presence in the professional community, and I mourn his passing personally.

6/22/2011 8:07 PM EDT

I was reading and enjoying Bob Pease even before Pease Porridge. I can’t remember where I first saw his articles but he had a presence in the Lightning Empiricist. I could sense a kindred spirit. Bob’s writing style was similar to his mentor George Philbrick. Both were down-to-earth and fun.
I don’t think you can teach analog and I imagine that Bob would have agreed with me. A person has to be born “analog” and have good mentoring to nurture his/her analog intuition. Bob was one of my early mentors through his writing. Analog thinking requires certain wiring in the brain, an ability to visualize order out of a chaotic situation. The analog mind doesn’t see only the components visible on the page of a printed schematic. The real analog mind “sees” all of the invisible parasitic components (which could be double the number of visible components) that affect the circuit performance and it considers them in the analysis.
My messy desk has been legendary at every place I’ve worked, starting at my first job at Burr-Brown Research after getting my MSEE. This picture in the link http://www.philbrickarchive.org/rap.htm shows that Bob was the king.
I finally met Bob many years ago at a NS seminar in Houston. NS knew how to get attendance. He talked about his Himalayan trek more than NS products but he used his experiences to illustrate analog concepts. Genius (and a bit crazy) ! ! (But then again, don’t most real analog engineers seem a bit crazy to an ordinary person? My wife tolerates my quirks and kindly says that I am “unique”.)
May God bless his tolerant family in their time of loss.
Marv Amerine

6/22/2011 11:51 PM EDT

Certainly the analog electronics engineers would miss the application notes by Jim and web-seminar and columns of Bob. They have inspired a generation of analog electronics engineers irrespective of the company they have worked for.

6/23/2011 12:17 AM EDT

Two wonderful genius men and both are lost. I feel so bad. It was 2005 and 2006 I met Bob at Analog Seminar in Toronto, On, CA. I asked for a low distortion wien bridge sine generator. Beside of advising some low noise opamps he did not hesitate to send me as snailmail the schematics. Such humble and great personality.
I will miss his articles.

Sevdet Y.

6/23/2011 1:12 AM EDT

To all the newbies, most of you can not understand that Bob and Jim were old school engineers. The were crafts mans at linear design. They like me, studied circuit design by going back to the fundamental pieces and learning the physics behind the semiconductor circuits. Jim and his partner, While at National Semiconductor, were renegades and rewrote the book on linear circuit design. The did radical things to devices, like adding multiple emitters and double bases to transistors. This innovation send National into the big times as being the cutting edge of design. They both will be very
much missed.
The Pease approach to lectures:
I saw him at a lecture at the Arrowfest back East and he shocked the young engineers. As he started his lecture on some temperature problems for a op amp design, he reach down and pulled up a stack of transparencies for a overhead projector. The engineers were all expecting to download a PPPresentation and then fall asleep. You see Bob wanted you to interact with his lecture and ask real questions.
Bob and Jim were definitely one of a kind.

6/23/2011 2:38 AM EDT

I read Bob's coloumn in Elecronic Design regularly and also thankful to him for his books which enhanced my knowledge on electronics. After jim, this is very sad news to hear.

May god bless his family, freinds and all fans, enough strength to bear this loss.

6/23/2011 8:31 AM EDT

Now I realize that God is designing something extraordinary in heaven so he called two of His best students to help Him out.

6/23/2011 11:42 AM EDT

Bob Pease fue uno de los cerbros de national semiconductors, una persona digna de seguir, sus notas y comentarios en sus columnas inspiraron a muchos ingenieros en sus diseños. BOB descansa en paz.

6/23/2011 2:22 PM EDT

So Sad. Two greats in such a short time. This is the end of an era...

6/23/2011 7:35 PM EDT

It is a sad June as we suddenly lost two analog gurus in such short time. Their contributions are so great that we all learn a lot and many were then inspired to follow their way to be analog addicted.

6/24/2011 9:50 AM EDT

Rest in peace, Bob.

6/24/2011 1:59 PM EDT

In early 2000's while working at PowerOne, I had an opportunity to meet with him once. His columns made much sense to a lot of engineers, even those without a formal EE education like myself. I have seen him many times since at National's campus and continued to enjoy reading his columns.

It is hard to fathom that there will not be any more "What is all this ..... any how."

Dr. MP Divakar

6/24/2011 3:13 PM EDT

A real mensch.

Perhaps he will be reincarnated. He'll come back as either an electron spin jockey or an all electric Beetle.

Rest in Pease!

6/26/2011 4:55 AM EDT

A sad loss. RIP, Bob.

6/26/2011 8:27 PM EDT

I just got back from a week in the back country with Boy Scouts and found the note about Bob's passing in my email in-box. While I never had the good fortune to meet him in person, we carried on several extended email conversations over the years, both about electronics (although I'm a digital guy, not analog) and about our other loves of hiking, trekking and the mountains. I'm truly saddened, feeling like I've lost a good friend.

Bob's sharp wit and willingness to share his expertise will be sorely missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife and family. Farewell, and may we meet again in that great lab in the sky...

6/26/2011 9:41 PM EDT

Oh my God! This is so tragic. One guru after another. The way incident took place I guess Bob was very depressed on Jim's passing away. Not wearing seat belt, driving fast on curvy areas at that age shows he was done with life and felt he would get the peace in that way. May his soul rests in peace. He and Jim would always be remembered very well by all engineering enthusiasts.

6/27/2011 3:05 PM EDT

Jim Williams gone.
Bob Pease -aka RAP- gone.
Nat Semi sold to Texas Instruments.
Is this the end of a chapter?
How will the story continue?

6/30/2011 11:30 PM EDT

I just come in and read this sad news. I am sorry to hear that. I am not in a field of Analog world any more. BTW, while I was, his insight and experience from column and book was a key to problem.

He will be missed from me too. Regards to him.

7/6/2011 12:16 AM EDT

I liked Bob's columns in Electronic Design. He's such a great and lovable writer. Its so sad. He'll surely be missed.

7/7/2011 8:05 PM EDT

I am shocked to hear of Bob's demise. While I mever met him, it's to me like losing a good friend and fellow engineer. I followed every one of his articles even though I am 77 yrs. old and retired from active engineering for over 23 years.

8/30/2011 5:35 PM EDT

Bob was a great man. Met him in a lecture more than a decade ago. Traded emails with him once. Loved his column. Have both his signed books Troubleshooting and driving.

It be nice if "Babes with Axes" could make a tribute to him. He will surely be missed, I wish the best to his family.

7/19/2012 8:06 AM EDT

ONG- just found out about this- this guy a ledgend- i used his troubleshooting guide to train up techs on the black arts of bebug after it had been given to me by another tech years before- what a guy and what a imprint he has left us.