Obituaries
• Robert B. Martin, 81, professor of English, emeritus, died on November 29 in Madison, Wisc.
Martin taught English at Princeton from 1951 to 1975 before retiring to become a fulltime writer in Oxford, England. An expert on Victorian literature, he published 10 books, including biographies of Alfred Lord Tennyson and four mystery novels. In 1981-82 and from 1984 to 1988 he was a professor at the University of Hawaii.
Born in Illinois, Martin earned degrees from the University of Iowa, Harvard University and Oxford University, where he was a Fulbright Scholar. He was an Army Air Corps veteran of World War II.
During his academic career, he had fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies, Guggenheim Foundation, Rockefeller Research Center, National Endowment for the Humanities and National Humanities Center. In 1987 he received an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Oxford University.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Robert B. Martin Library Fund in care of the Recording Secretary at Princeton University, P.O. Box 140, Princeton N.J 08544-0140.
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"Treiman played an enormously important role in particle physics," said Curtis Callan, who is James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Physics and one of Treiman's students. "First, he defined and exemplified a new style of theory in which the theorist became an active partner with the experimentalist in interpreting and devising critical experiments. Second, he was an extraordinary mentor of students and young scientists." His exceptional achievements as a teacher were honored in 1985 with the Oersted Medal of the American Association of Physics Teachers.
Treiman's analysis of nuclear beta-decay set the framework for all subsequent experimental studies of how space-time symmetry breaks down within the nuclei of atoms, Callan explained. He had a similar impact on the understanding of symmetry violation in the decays of elementary particles, especially the K-meson.
In 1959 Treiman and Marvin Goldberger derived what became known as the Goldberger-Treiman relation, which gave a quantitative connection between the strong-and weak-interaction properties of the proton and neutron. That discovery catalyzed a series of developments that allowed scientists to explain all of strong and weak-interaction physics in terms of quantum field theory. Those theories are known today as the Standard Model of elementary particle physics. A native of Chicago, Treiman began his college career at Northwestern University, then served in the Navy from 1944 to 1946. He resumed his studies at the University of Chicago, where he earned a BS in 1949, MS in 1950 and PhD in 1952.
He joined the Princeton faculty in 1952, was promoted to professor in 1963 and became Higgins Professor in 1977. Chair of the Physics Department from 1981 to 1987, he chaired the University Research Board from 1988 to 1995, retiring from active duty in 1998.
Among many other advisory activities, he served on the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel of the Department of Energy and on the board of governors of the Superconducting Supercollider. Elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1972, he was also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society.
Treiman is survived by his wife Joan, daughters Rebecca and Katherine, son Thomas, and seven grandchildren. Donations may be made to Amnesty International, the Leukemia Society of America or the International Rescue Committee. A memorial service at Princeton is planned for January.
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