Abraham C. Olshen 33
Abraham Olshen ’33, October 2, 2000, in San Francisco, California. Abraham earned a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Iowa in 1935 and a PhD in 1937. In 1934, he married Dorothy Olds ’37. He held various jobs as a statistician and actuary in Portland and Iowa before joining West Coast Life Insurance Company, San Francisco, in 1946 as an actuary. He held increasingly responsible positions with the company, retiring in 1968 as senior vice president and member of the board of directors. He continued to work as a consultant after retiring. He was a member and officer of many professional organizations and committees during his career and was a fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science. He contributed research articles to scientific and trade journals and publications, including the Annals of Mathematical Statistics and the Encyclopedia Britannica . Survivors include a son and a daughter. Dorothy died in 1998.
Appeared in Reed magazine: February 2001
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.
comments powered by
From the Archives: The Lives they Led
The Colorful “Citizen-Mayor” Invigorated Portland
Novelist Plots a Life of Adventures
Defender of the Citadel
The President Who Led Reed through Crisis of the ’70s
Historian of the Big Questions
Chemist Probed the Architecture of the Infinitesimal
A Lady of Letters
Fear and Freedom in the Land of AIDS
Jurist Found Freedom in State Constitutions
Physicist Redefined Photography as Abstract Art Form.
Saw Land as a Resource, Not a Commodity
A Force Behind Advertising and Asian Art
Blacklisted During McCarthy Era, Photojournalist Covered Turbulent ’60s
Chow Bella
Innovative Dancer Defied Gravity
Architect of the Clean Air Act
Minimalist on Maximum Overdrive
Influential Psychologist Overturned Assumptions About Men and Women
Hell on Wheels
Prosecuted the Klan in Landmark Case
The Butterfly Effect
Physicist, Educator, Founder of Pi Day
The Fish Missionary
High Flyer Broke Records—and Barriers
Slain defending teenager from hatred.
Influential Professor, Jazz Musician.
Statistician Who Defied The Odds.
Philosopher of the Air
Taught a Generation How to Look at Art
Authored Elegant Thrillers
Saw Death Camp Twice: As Prisoner and as Liberator
Master of the sucker-punch sentence
AIDS Researcher, Gay-Rights Pioneer
The Architect of Zoloft
Sorted the "good" cholesterol from the bad
Journalist, activist, witness to history
Investigative journalist won Pulitzer prize
Green Pioneer Smashed the Glass Microscope
Cartographer of the Brain
Radical lawyer fought for prison reform—and paid with her life
Literary Scholar, Dedicated Teacher
Visionary Technologist, Prodigal Son.
Mathematical physicist hunted giant prime numbers.
Electrifying economist investigated the economics of air pollution.
The Literary Sorcerer
Zen priest, beat poet
Photojournalist captured flames and the spirit of firefighters
The "Godfather of Old Town" revitalized Portland's inner city
Particle physicist stopped bulldozers from razing Hidden Peak
"Unorthodox" dean, inspiring correspondent
From wartime welder to molecular biologist.
Cardiac pioneer was on the scene of every heart attack in Juneau for 14 years
Michigan congressman led fight for sanctions against South Africa
Poet of Ordinary Mysteries
Leading political scientist survived Nazi prison.
Anthropologist revolutionized field of sociolinguistics
Author, filmmaker, anthropologist
The Henry Ford of higher ed.
Rocket scientist and sailboat designer
California preservationist
Historian of towering stature
Helped Troops Escape Nazis, Captured Vital SS Files.
Beloved dean played key role in the life of Steve Jobs.
Nuclear physicist who influenced space exploration
Pioneer in computer animation
Anthropologist, linguist, ethnobotanist
First Native American student at Reed served as teacher and social worker
“Father of Shaw Island”
Chemist helped develop polio vaccine
Intelligence officer did fieldwork for OSS and CIA
Author, translator, and artist
Inventor Played Key Role in the Electronic Revolution
Influential historian of the Pacific Northwest
Visionary designer colored outside the lines.
Her translation turned Sappho into a modernist icon
Pioneering Environmentalist Fought for Arctic Refuge
Brilliant surgeon, tragic accident
Kinetic Sculptor