Joe Don Stuart

Joe Don Stuart, 72, of Austin, Texas died May 2, 2004 after a brief illness. He was born in Brownsboro, Texas, in 1932. He graduated from Brownsboro High School in 1949. He attended Tyler Junior College prior to entering the Navy. He served four years in the Navy during the Korean War. He was aboard the destroyer U.S.S. Brown (DD-546). After the Korean War he attended the University of Texas at Austin where he received a B.A. in chemistry in 1957 and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He was a pioneer in the use of digital computers to solve scientific problems beginning in 1957 with an IBM CPC computer. His research group was one of the first to use computers to solve problems in quantum mechanics. He was awarded a Ph.D. in physics in 1963 under F.A. Matsen. His professional career began with a 2 ½ year stint at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. In 1966 he returned to Austin and worked in the defense industry at Tracor. From there he went to work for Radian Corporation as a pioneer in environmental research, emissions modeling, and expert systems. Most of his work involved the use of computers in the solution of real-world problems. He was an avid stamp collector most of his life and was an expert in the field of counterfeit stamps of Mexico. He was a lifetime member and board member of the Mexico Elmhurst Philatelic Society International. MEPSI is an international society devoted to the study of the stamps of Mexico. For 10 years he was the chief administrator of the expertization service. This is a group dedicated to evaluating the authenticity of Mexican stamps. He is survived by his wife, Dixie Stuart; son and daughter-in-law, Tony and Colette Stuart of Amarillo; daughter and son-in-law, Sherry and Bob Cushing of Sarasota, Florida; five grandchildren, Tom, Cleve and Sarah Stuart and Rachel and Katherine Cushing; and his mother-in-law, Ezell Curtis. His mother Zephie Wells Stuart and father W.O. Stuart preceded him in death. The family will receive friends from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 5th at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home. Services will be at 11:00 a.m., Thursday, May 6, 2004 in the Weed-Corley-Fish Chapel followed by burial at Austin Memorial Park. Arrangements by Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home, 3125 N. Lamar Blvd., Austin, TX 78705 (512) 452-8811. You may view memorials online at wcfish.com