RMS shocked and saddened to learn of death of Spencer Shorte

The RMS is shocked and saddened to learn of the death of Spencer Shorte, who was a globally renowned expert in bioimaging and a former member of the Society’s Light Microscopy Committee.
 
Spencer was Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of enterprise software company, Stratocore. He was Scientific Director to the Technology-Service Unit for Photonic BioImaging at the Institut Pasteur (Paris), and Chief-Executive Scientific Director of the Institut Pasteur Korea. 
 
He was a highly respected microscopist, with more than 30 years of applied experience in the fields of cell physiology, cell biology, and neuroendocrinology. He published more than 75 research articles and filed seven patents.
 
Spencer’s work for the international scientific community also included serving as founding president of the European international association, Core Technologies for Life Sciences.
 
In 2005 he received the ‘French national engineer of the year’ award in the category of Research Science, for his work on microscopic tomography. In 2015, he was distinguished as laureate to the prestigious science prize “Prix Thérèse Lebrasseur“ (Fondation de France).
 
RMS President Peter O’Toole said: “Spencer was an incredibly talented, hugely important and popular figure within the microscopy and wider core facility community, for whom he was a pioneer. On a personal note, for me, he was an inspirational leader, a colleague, and a genuine friend. I know many people will currently be struggling to process this awful news. We would like to offer our sincere condolences to Spencer’s family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time.”
 
An online tribute page has been set up for people to share their memories of Spencer.