Obituary of Saul Altshuler (1919-2011)

Published in the Los Angeles Times from December 2 to December 4, 2011. Visit Guest Book

Altshuler received his physics Ph.D. from the University of Southern California in 1952. Following a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Iowa State University at Ames, he accepted a position in the Applied Physics Department at the Ramo-Wooldrige Corporation (TRW). During his 25 year tenure at TRW he held many positions, including Head, Theoretical Physics Group. Following his retirement from TRW in 1979, he formed his own company, PSI, located in Manhattan Beach, California.

ALTSHULER, Ph.D., Saul June 11, 1919-October 10, 2011 Saul Altshuler was born in Brooklyn, New York to Russian immigrant parents. At an early age, his family relocated to the Boyle Heights district of Los Angeles. After graduation from Roosevelt High School, he received a Bachelor’s degree in Physics from UCLA . He studied at The California Institute of Technology and at the University of Southern California, where he was awarded a Ph.D. from The Department of Physics in 1952. Following a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Iowa State University at Ames, Dr. Altshuler returned to Los Angeles where he accepted a position in the Applied Physics Department at the Ramo-Wooldridge Corporation, later known as TRW. During his twenty-five year tenure at TRW, Dr. Altshuler held many positions, including Head, Theoretical Physics Group, Systems Research Staff. He will be remembered for his strong analytical skills, his ability to invent creative solutions to technical problems and as a source of new and stimulating ideas. He authored and co-authored many publications in his field and held four United States Patents as sole Inventor.

In 1972, Dr. Altshuler was awarded a Visiting Fellowship at the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics at the University of Colorado in Boulder. While at the Institute, he met his wife, Edith, of 38 years.

Following his retirement from TRW in 1979, Dr. Altshuler was a consultant for R&D Associates and Litton Industries, after which he formed his own company, Physical Science Interests (PSI), located in Manhattan Beach. The Company was awarded contracts by the U.S. Navy and DARPA for scientific research in the communications field.

Colleagues at U.S.C. may remember Dr. Altshuler as the reigning champion at arm-wrestling, and as a talented violinist. His family enjoyed his performances at holiday gatherings and many friends looked forward to his musical birthday wishes.

In 2006, Dr. and Mrs. Altshuler moved to Santa Barbara making the City their home until he passed away. His parents and brother, Nathan, predeceased him. He will be missed by Edith, three children, Sarah of Santa Barbara, Susan of Central City, Colorado and Scott of Reno, Nevada, two grandchildren, Grace of Santa Barbara and Nicholas of Reno, a brother Lawrence and wife Helen of Santa Barbara, and nephews, Mark and David Altshuler.