David M. Green

GREEN, David Marvin

Pioneer in the psychology of hearing and signal detection theory

David M. Green, formerly of Winchester, Massachusetts, died of cancer at his home in Daytona Beach, Florida, on July 14, 2022, at the age of 90. Dave was born in Jackson, Michigan, on June 7, 1932, to the late Carrie (Crawford) and George Green, and was predeceased by his siblings Doris (Ramsay), Barbara (Hundley), and George Green.

Dave made prodigious contributions to auditory science and to other disciplines through the enormously far-reaching application of signal detection theory. His innovations had a profound impact on methodology and enabled revolutionary scientific advancements in the fields of acoustics, experimental psychology, and neuroscience. Dave earned a BA from the University of Chicago, and BA, MA, and Ph.D. degrees in Psychology from the University of Michigan, plus honorary MA degrees from the University of Cambridge, England, and Harvard University. He served on the faculties at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard University (including three years as chair of the psychology department), the University of Pennsylvania, the University of California San Diego, and the University of Florida. As a consultant at Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN), Dave participated in the 1978 re-enactment of the Kennedy assassination conducted by the US House Select Committee on Assassinations.

Dave's numerous honors and awards included election to the National Academy of Sciences and President of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA), and receipt of the Gold and Silver Medals of the ASA, Award of Merit from the Association for Research in Otolaryngology, the Hugh Knowles Prize for Distinguished Achievement, and awards from the National Institutes of Health and the Society for Experimental Psychologists, among others. Dave published over 170 scientific articles and chapters plus several books on signal detection and psychophysics, hearing, and profile analysis. Numerous graduate students and post-docs flowed through Dave's labs and enjoyed his outstanding and generous mentorship.

As an undergraduate, Dave married Clara Lofstrom, and they had four children together. Clara died in 1978 of cancer. Dave married Marian Heinzmann in 1980. Dave and Marian enjoyed many years visiting with friends, family-including five grandchildren-and former colleagues at the couple's homes on the St. John's River and later in Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach, as well as at their summer cabin in Lyman, Maine.

Before retirement, Dave took long summer vacations with his family visiting national parks such as Zion, Bryce, Yellowstone, Arches, and Yosemite. Dave also enjoyed working on many projects with his children, such as building electronics, grandfather clocks, and renovating the cabin in Maine-which involved, at times, rolling large rocks around the property with the help of his family. Dave was also an avid sailor, stargazer, golfer, clarinetist, and animal lover (he had many cats and dogs over the years). Dave retired from the University of Florida in 1996. His great pleasures after retirement included home improvement projects, boating on the St. Johns River, driving his tractor, and walking on the beach.

Dave is survived by his wife, Marian Green of Daytona Beach, and his children Allan Green and wife Barbara Bolten of Natick, MA and their sons James Green and David Green; Phillip Green and wife Nancy Bergeron of Cambridge, MA and their daughters Hadley Green and Sophie Green; Kathy Cocco and husband Gene Cocco of Thousand Oaks, CA and their daughter Clara Cocco; and George Green of Watertown, MA, as well as many nieces and nephews.