Robert James Baker (1942 - 2018)

Born 8 Apr 1942 in Warren, Bradley, Arkansas, United States

Ancestors

Died 30 Mar 2018 at age 75 in Lubbock, Lubbock, Texas, United States

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Biography

Robert Baker is Notable.

Robert James Baker was born on April 8, 1942 in Warren, Bradley County, Arkansas to parents Laura Cooper and James Simeon Baker, who was killed during World War II. His mother subsequently remarried.^[1][2] Robert spend a good deal of his youth with his grandparents on a 100-acre farm in the west gulf coastel plain of southeastern Arkansas. He identified his maternal grandmother, "Grandma Rosie," as his best friend and greatest influence during these years.^[1]

In 1959, he began attending college at Ouachita Baptist University, but later transferred and graduated from the University of Arkansas at Monticello in 1963.^[2] He then went on to Oklahoma State University where he recieved his M.S. in 1965, working under the direction of Bryan P. Glass.^[1][2] He married Jean Joyner on August 19, 1961, but they divorced in 1975.^[1] During the marriage they had at least one daughter together.^[1] On May 28, 1978 he married Laura Kyle, to whome he was married for thirty-eight years. The couple had one son.^[2][1]

In 1979, Robert James Baker received the Paul Whitfield Horn Professor Award from Texas Tech University, which is its highest honor. In 1980, he received the C. Hart Merriam Award from the American Society of Mammalogists.^[1][2][3] As an American mammalogist he made major scientific contributions through his research and leadership.^[1] He studied bats, as well as the effects of radiation on animals.^[2] His accomplishments in the field of mammalogy are compared with other dominant personalities, both historical and contemporary.^[4][5]

Robert died on March 30, 2018 at his home in Lubbock, Texas.^[1][2]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8} Hugh H Genoways, Robert D Bradley, David J Schmidly, Lisa C Bradley, James J Bull, Karen McBee, Meredith Hamilton, Peter A Larsen, Obituary: Robert James Baker (1942–2018), Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 99, Issue 4, 13 August 2018, Pages 983–1012, "Obituary: Robert James Baker (1942-2018)." Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6} Wikipedia Contributor. "Robert James Baker." Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
3. ↑ Kwon, Diana, The Scientist, 5 Apr 2018. "Robert Baker, Bat Biologist, Dies." Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
4. ↑ Special Publications / Museum of Texas Tech University, number 71, October 11, 2019, pages 1-38. From Field to Laboratory: A Memorial Volume in Honor of Robert J. Baker.
5. ↑ Schmidly, David & Bradley, Robert & Roberts, E. & Bradley, Lisa & Genoways, Hugh. (2019). A scientometric appreciation of Robert J. Baker's contributions to science and mammalogy.