It is with sadness that we share the news that Professor Stanley Falkow of Stanford University School of Medicine, esteemed member of the editorial committee for the Annual Review of Microbiology, co-author of three review articles and an autobiographical article,  passed away (5th May 2018) at the age of 84.

Those of us who didn’t know Professor Falkow can get a vivid impression of him by reading his autobiographical article entitled: The Fortunate Professor. The title makes it clear that this was a man with an abundance of gratitude. The abstract of his article says simply:

My professional life can be summarized by a quote from the Talmud.

Much have I learned from my teachers,

More from my colleagues,

But most from my students.

It is the fortunate professor who learns from the student.

All of us at Annual Reviews feel equally fortunate to have Professor Falkow play a part in the success of our organization. Our thoughts go out to his family, friends, co-workers and of course his students, from whom he learned so much.