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Michael Morden
Michael Morden, adjunct lecturer in philosophy at U-M-Dearborn, born Dec. 15, 1942. He served in the Peace Corps in 1965–67, teaching in a small town in Ethiopia. He held a B.A. in philosophy from Kalamazoo College and Ph.D. in philosophy from Columbia University.
He is survived by his wife, Margaret Ryan, and son, Andrew.
Memorial contributions may be made to Horizon Upward Bound of the Cranbrook Educational Community, 380 Lone Pine Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303.
J. Radcliffe Squires
J. Radcliffe Squires, professor emeritus of English, born and raised, and on the world of classical Greece,” says English Prof. Laurence Goldstein. “His short lyrics favor mountain landscape and metaphysical speculation, and his long narrative poems concern the legendary figures of Beowulf, Hercules and Daedalus.
“His critical books, The Loyalties of Robinson Jeffers and The Major Themes of Robert Frost, were important early evaluations of the two poets, and his critical study, Allen Tate: A Literary Biography, remains the standard survey of Tate’s writings.”
In a review of his early poems, the poet Anne Stevenson wrote that “all Squires’ poems share common properties-wit, thought, and a philosophy of nature in which Man is a sacred, yet ruinous intrusion.” In another review, critic Dana Gioia said: “I feel that Squires deserves consideration as one of the finest American poets writing today.”
Squires was died in 1976.
Frank Copley
Frank O. Copley, professor emeritus of Latin, born on Aug. 11, 1907, in Mount Vernon, N.Y. He received a B.A. from Stanford University in 1930, an M.A. degree from Harvard University in 1931 and studied at the University of Goettingen, Germany, before returning to Stanford where he received his doctorate in 1935.
He is survived by his wife Margaret of Rogers City; his sister, Gertrude Knight of Palo Alto, Calif.; five children: Ann C. Zinn of South Lyon; Susan F. Copley of Dexter; John A. Copley of Ypsilanti; James D. Copley of North Bend, Ore.; and Elizabeth E. Copley of Bexley, Ohio, and by seven grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Copley Prize Fund, an endowment established by students of Frank Copley to recognize outstanding achievement in Latin and awarded by the Department of Classical Studies each year.
William Mirsky
William Mirsky, professor emeritus of mechanical engineering, born July 10, 1922, in Prystan, in what is now the Ukraine. He was the son of Peter and Mary (Yewush) Mirsky. He attended public school in Hartford, Conn., then received a B.S. in mechanical engineering at the University of Connecticut in 1944, and M.S.E. (1951) and Ph.D. (1956) degrees from the U-M.
He joined the U-M as assistant professor of mechanical engineering in 1956, was promoted to associate professor in 1958 and to full professor in 1964. Upon his retirement in June 1989, the Regents said: “Prof. Mirsky’s interest in engineering education has been shown by his revision and updating of undergraduate courses as well as his interest in setting on-line computers for automotive testing in course work and research.”
He served in the U.S. Army on the Manhattan Project during World War II. He had industrial experience with Westinghouse Electric Corp., General Motors Corp., United Aircraft and Detroit Edison.
“His expertise in combustion and emissions has been sought by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Public Health Service. His knowledge and experience have also been recognized by a number of professional organizations,” the Regents noted. “He has served on the Society of Automotive Engineers E-31 Committee on Aircraft Emissions.”
Mirsky was also a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers, the Combustion Institute, Sigma Xi and Phi Kappa Phi.
After he retired from the U-M, Mirsky volunteered his skill in computer programming and teaching about computers to the Salvation Army, the Learning in Retirement program at Turner Geriatric Services and the Burns Park Senior Center.
He preceded in death by a half brother, Steven.
A memorial service is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. today (Feb. 1) at Calvary Presbyterian Church, 2727 Fernwood St.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Professor William Mirsky Memorial Scholarship Fund, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics.
William S. Benninghoff
William S. Benninghoff, 74, professor emeritus of botany and director of the Matthaei Botanical Gardens from 1977 to 1986, Interment will be at Arlington National Cemetery later.
In 1957 Benninghoff joined the botany faculty, and during his 31-year academic career taught plant ecology, general ecology (with Prof. Francis C. Evans), Quaternary paleoecology, and historical plant geography and served as adviser to doctoral and postdoctoral scholars.
He earned three degrees at Harvard: S.B. magna cum laude (1940), M.S. (1942) and Ph.D. (1948).
During World War II he served as deck officer on the U. S.S. Tatum in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific, twice receiving the Bronze Star, and retired in 1960 as Lt. Commander, U.S.N.R. (Intelligence).
At the U.S. Geological Survey in Washington, D.C., from 1948 to 1957, Benninghoff was promoted from botanist in charge of field parties in Alaska, Iceland and Greenland to chief of the Alaska Terrain and Permafrost Section.
He was recognized for professional accomplishments with the Department of Interior Meritorious Service Award, 1954; the Antarctic Service Medal of the United States, 1973; Hiroshima (Japan) University Commemorative Medal, 1974; honorary life member as founder of the International Association for Aerobiology, 1982; and first convenor of the several Gordon Research Conferences on Aerobiology, 1980. He was a member of the Explorers Club of New York and the Cosmos Club of Washington, D.C.
His research interests included the study of airborne biological particles; electrostatics; polar biology, science policy and monitoring, especially in Antarctica; plant community dynamics; Quaternary climate and vegetation changes using pollen analysis; history of science; and those areas related to his teaching.
He is survived by his wife, Anne; son, Jonathan; daughter, Valerie Cathey; and mother, Edith E. Shiffer Benninghoff.
Memorial gifts may be directed to The Nature Conservancy, Michigan Chapter (Benninghoff Tract), 2840 East Grand River, Suite 5, East Lansing, MI 48823; The Cranbrook Institute of Science Library, Box 801, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303-0801; the Harvard College Fund, Class of 1940, University Place, 124 Mt. Auburn St., Cambridge, MA 02138-5762; or Abiding Presence Lutheran Church, 1550 W. Walton Blvd., Rochester Hills, MI 48309.
