William Ernest Marsh

I was a student of Bill´s in the early ´70s when he taught a class named "Strings, Trees, and Languages." I had been a total math type in high school, but I decided that I would go in a completely different direction (Journalism) when I went to college, and for the first semester, I did just that. But who could resist a course with such a great name? Thus began my reentry into math and then into mathematical linguistics and automata theory. The class was truly a revelation. After taking the...

I was a student of Bill Marsh´s at Hampshire College during a January Term course in the early 1980s on computer language compilers. Bill gave a lecture about parsing sentences that was one of the stand-out best lectures of my undergrad career. His energy, knowledge, clear method of presentation, and joy in the subject was incredible. He made a subject I was struggling with become clear and easy. I´ve always remembered that lecture. I´ve never struggled with that subject again. RIP Bill, and...

I first met Bill Marsh at Amherst Aikikai in 1982, the year I started aikido. After I graduated I moved to the west coast and then eventually to Oregon. I was delighted to discover he was also in the Pacific Northwest. He came down to Portland for an aikido seminar at Multnomah Aikikai and stayed at my house. Gosh this must´ve been the late 1990´s. I recall he was standing in the kitchen telling me a story and pouring himself a cup of coffee. I stood amazed as I watched him. Why? It...