Dr. Carl Maggiore

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. - Dr. Carl J. Maggiore, PhD, 67, of Los Alamos, N.M., died at home on Friday, Jan. 7, 2011, in the company of his wife and children, after losing a 10 month battle with colo-rectal cancer.

Carl was born and raised in Grand Island, the oldest child of Dr. Carl H. and Betty Maggiore. Carl attended St. Mary's and later Central Catholic High School. He graduated from Creighton University and received his PhD in physics from Michigan State University, where he completed his thesis work on the cyclotron.

Carl's life in physics was informed by his flexible intellect and insatiable curiosity. He was a patient teacher to his summer students, and was always a gracious and generous colleague. Carl began his career as a researcher in the Environmental Sciences Laboratory of the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and went on to design detectors for the Princeton Gamma Tech Company; he began to work at Los Alamos National Laboratory in April, 1976. At Los Alamos, his main interest was in finding practical applications for accelerated particles. Initially, he worked with particles from the vertical accelerator at the Ion Beam Facility to develop a nuclear microprobe. He later founded the Ion Beam Materials Laboratory, which was specifically dedicated to using accelerated particles to modify or analyze materials, and for which he and his colleagues received a Distinguished Performance Award. On his retirement from LANL, Carl worked for several years to test the feasibility of treating tumors using anti-protons, performing experimental work at CERN under the auspices of PBar Technology Corporation and with collaborators both at CERN and the University of Aarhus, in Denmark.

In 2007, Carl began a second career as an artist, discovering a talent and passion for drawing and sculpture that was nurtured by teachers and friends at Santa Fe Community College. His gift flourished for all too short a time, but he derived much satisfaction from the work he had accomplished by the time of his death; he felt he had happily left physics behind for something better. Music was also an essential part of Carl's life, and it sustained him through his final months.

Following two surgeries in the early '90s to alleviate years of severe back pain, Carl discovered the joys of riding a recumbent bike. He loved the outdoors, and felt privileged to live in the mountains of New Mexico surrounded by so much beauty.

Carl was preceded in death by both of his parents in 2003.

Immediate survivors include his wife, Edwina Lieb, and children Antonio Maggiore and Anna Maggiore, all of New Mexico; his two brothers and their spouses: Dr. John and Lisa Maggiore of Lenoir, NC, and Hal and Jubi Maggiore of Grand Island; three sisters and their spouses, Laura Maggiore and Stu Leichleiter of Phillips, Francine and Robert Rasmussen of Cotesfield and Gina and Laurence Schilthuis, of Dallas, Texas. He will also be dearly missed by his 20 nieces and nephews.

Family and friends will gather to share their memories of Carl and enjoy his art, at his house, on Saturday, Jan. 29.

Please sign the guestbook at www.theindependent.com/obits.