ARNOLD TREHUB

1923 - 2017

ARNOLD TREHUB

1923 - 2017

ARNOLD TREHUB Obituary

Published by Legacy Remembers from Apr. 6 to Apr. 7, 2017.
TREHUB, Arnold Amherst, Arnold Trehub, 93, of the Applewood Retirement Community in Amherst, died peacefully at home on Monday, April 3, 2017. He was born in Malden, Massachusetts on October 19, 1923 to Clarence and Rose Trehub (nee Issner). His parents had emigrated from Russia to the United States in the early 20th century and settled in Boston. He and his older brother George were raised—on Evelyn Street, in Mattapan—by their mother and an aunt after the death of their father during the Great Depression. Trehub graduated from Roxbury Memorial High School and was in his freshman year at Northeastern University at the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces the following year and received basic and specialized training in New Jersey, Georgia, Kansas, and Oklahoma, during which time he was a PT instructor and boxed welterweight for his unit. He shipped out in 1944 and served for the duration of the war in the Pacific Theater as a radio technician working on B-29 Superfortress bombers with the 358th Air Service Group/509th Composite Group, 313th Bombardment Wing, 504th Bombardment Group of the 20th Air Force, based on the island of Tinian in the Marianas. Among the aircraft he worked on were the Enola Gay and Bockscar—the planes that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He was honorably discharged from the USAAF in 1946 with the rank of sergeant. Trehub continued his education after the war at Northeastern University, graduating in 1948 with a B.A. He married Elaine Epstein in 1950, shortly after her graduation from Radcliffe College. He received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Boston University in 1954. That same year he accepted a position as the director of a small research laboratory at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Leeds, Massachusetts and moved with his wife to Amherst, where they were both among the founders of the Jewish Community of Amherst (JCA). He also held an adjunct faculty appointment in the Psychology Department at the University of Massachusetts. He retired from government service in 1982 but continued working in his field as an independent researcher. In his long career as a cognitive scientist, Trehub authored numerous publications on the neurophysiology of the human brain and the nature of consciousness, including "Neuronal Models for Cognitive Processes: Networks for Learning, Perception, and Imagination" (Journal of Theoretical Biology, 1977); The Cognitive Brain (MIT Press, 1991); "Space, Self, and the Theater of Consciousness" (Consciousness and Cognition, 2007); and "Evolution's Gift: Subjectivity and the Phenomenal World" (in Consciousness and the Universe: Quantum Physics, Evolution, Brain & Mind, 2011). An early adopter of the Web, he was an active participant in online scientific discussion forums until the very end of his life. Under the pseudonym Ben Chassiel, Trehub was also an accomplished artist, designing polarized light ("heliokinetic") collages that can be seen in the collections of the Mead Art Museum at Amherst College and the Springfield Museum of Fine Arts. Trehub loved his family, his country, art, cognitive science, the ocean, lobster bisque, and the New England Patriots. Like many men of his generation, he disliked military discipline but was intensely proud of having served. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother George, and his daughter Lorna. He is survived by Elaine, his wife of sixty-six years; his son Craig of Amherst; and his son Aaron of Opelika, Alabama. Private funeral services have been held. A memorial service will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, well-wishers are asked to make contributions to the Northeastern University Libraries, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst Libraries, or a library of their choice. Memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com

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September 28, 2017

Aaron Sloman posted to the memorial.

June 18, 2017

Peter Hankins posted to the memorial.

May 26, 2017

Ellen Shapiro posted to the memorial.

Aaron Sloman

September 28, 2017

(Apolgies for empty entry sent by mistake.)

I first encountered Arnold as a fellow contributor to online discussions (on 'usenet') relating to philosophy, cognitive science and artificial intelligence.

I thought his were among the most interesting and illuminating contributions -- even if we did not agree on all points.

So when I noticed his 1991 book The Cognitive Brain in our bookshop I bought it without hesitation. It soon became clear to me that he had made major contributions to the science of mind and brain that had mostly gone unnoticed. So I urged him to make an online copy of his book and all his papers available, which he did here: http://people.umass.edu/trehub/

I regret that we never met, though our email interaction went on intermittently over several years. I was sad to hear of his death, in April this year. I hope recognition of his work will continue to grow. I'll certainly continue to acknowledge use of ideas I got from him.

My best wishes to his family.

Aaron Sloman
School of Computer Science
University of Birmingham
UK

Peter Hankins

June 18, 2017

He was a highly valued contributor to online discussion on my blog and will be much missed.

Ellen Shapiro

May 26, 2017

I am so sorry to have stumbled across this news. My condolences to you, Elaine, and your family.
Ellen Shapiro (Thelma's daughter and Arnold's first cousin once removed)

Peggy Etler

May 16, 2017

Many, many hugs to you Elaine, Aaron and Craig. I so enjoyed having lunch with you and Arnold last summer. SO glad we were able to do that. Good conversation and lots of laughter. Special, special people. Love you lots Peggy Etler

Roberta Wilson

April 7, 2017

I will miss my kind, loving, and brilliant Uncle Arnold. I will always remember you with a smile because that's how I always saw you smiling gently at all of us,non judgmental and so very wise . Oftentimes a man of few words but those words were to be listened to. I will carry your NE Patriots torch with mine and am so happy you got to watch the historical Superbowl this year with your family and chinese food! Now that was truly a win! Love,
Roberta

Pat and Jamie Petterson

April 6, 2017

Aaron,

Pat and I mourn with you in your loss. May you and your family find peace.

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Douglass Funeral Service

87 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01002

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Sign ARNOLD TREHUB's Guest Book

Not sure what to say?

September 28, 2017

Aaron Sloman posted to the memorial.

June 18, 2017

Peter Hankins posted to the memorial.

May 26, 2017

Ellen Shapiro posted to the memorial.