Manley, David Baker (September 4, 1939—April 10, 2024)
David Manley from Leawood, Kansas was a student for four years at Grinnell, graduating with a B.S. degree in mathematics in 1961 and the Linn Smith Prize in mathematics and statistics (1960). He was a resident of Smith Hall while he was a member of the College wrestling team and winner of second place in the conference meet in 1960 and a resulting membership of Honor G. He also was a member of the Math Club.
David then attended the University of Arizona for the study of mathematics. Before earning a degree, however, he went to a Naval officer candidate school and joined the U.S. Navy, serving as communications officer aboard a destroyer in the Pacific during peacetime and then at the Naval Weapons Office in Washington, D.C. He retired from the Navy in 1965 and became a member of the Naval Reserve until 1970 when he was discharged with the rank of Lieutenant.
Next was the University of Kansas with a NDEA title IV fellowship that resulted in his earning chemical engineering degrees of M.S. in 1968 and PhD in 1970. His research concerned the experimental measurement and correlation of physical properties of petrochemicals.
After these graduate studies, David took an assistant professor position at the University of Missouri in Rolla, MO and remained there for thirty years, retiring in 2000 as professor emeritus. While there, he developed a research program in applied thermodynamics, did extensive consulting with the chemical processing industries, executed many grants and contracts and published many papers and obtained many patents.
After retiring from academia, David continued to consult and license his patented technology for several years while living on a tree farm outside Rolla and studying mysticism and consciousness and spending time at a house he owned in Santé Fe, New Mexico.
In 1965 while at KU, David married Virginia, and they had three children (Susan, Allison and Matt) and 10 grandchildren and one great grandchild. This marriage, however, ended in divorce. David subsequently married Pam, but that also ended in divorce.
In his spare time David enjoyed backpacking, woodworking and being an arborist.
Duane Krohnke (author)
