Missing Dr. Walker

This news of Dr. Mike Walker’s death was especially upsetting for me, as I was his assistant instructor last semester for the graduate class N500. A few things about Mike:\nAs an instructor, I found his lectures on lipid signaling fascinating, and I’ve never thought, or will ever think about, fatty acids in the same way again. As a mentor, he was not as quick to give advice as he was to provide a logical sieve. There is an important difference here, and it usually goes unappreciated. As a friend, he was supportive and inspiring. Many traditional scientists have no use for the arts. The concept of artistic value in science is not emphasized in scientific courses; therefore, it is a matter of personal development to appreciate value in these terms. Mike had fully developed that value system, which is one of the reasons I think he was director of the neuroscience program. Mike and I just had a conversation no less than two weeks ago about Henri Cartier-Bresson. The walls of his office are littered with images captured by the famous photographer. Bresson is credited with creating “The Decisive Moment.” In his famous photograph “Behind the Gare St. Lazare,” Bresson captures tension as a mysterious man is suspended in the air leaping over a pool of water. Mike also knew how to appreciate life and live in the moment. In his own way, he was an artist; on the canvas of nature he wielded the brush of scientific inquiry, painting with the ultimate colors of truth, each stroke revealing her secrets.\nYou will be missed, Mike.