Amar G Bose: An acoustic engineer and inventor

Amar G Bose, the visionary engineer, inventor and billionaire entrepreneur whose namesake company, the Bose Corp, became synonymous with high-quality audio systems and speakers for home users, auditoriums and automobiles, died Friday !"-#$-"#!%& at his home in 'ayland, (assachusetts) *e was +%) *is death was confirmed by his son, ,anu G Bose) As founder and chairman of the privately held company, Bose focused relentlessly on acoustic engineering innovation) *is speakers, although e-pensive, earned a reputation for bringing concert-hall-quality audio into the home) And by refusing to offer stock to the public, Bose was able to pursue risky long-term research, such as noise-canceling headphones and an innovative suspension system for cars without the pressures of quarterly earnings announcements) .n a "##/ interview in 0opular 1cience maga2ine, he said3 4. would have been fired a hundred times at a company run by (BAs) But . never went into business to make money) . went into business so that . could do interesting things that hadn5t been done before)4 A perfectionist and a devotee of classical music, Bose was disappointed by the

inferior sound of a high-priced stereo system he purchased when he was an (.6 engineering student in the !78#s) *is interest in acoustic engineering piqued, he reali2ed that +# percent of the sound e-perienced in a concert hall was indirect, meaning that it bounced off walls and ceilings before reaching the audience) 6his reali2ation, using basic concepts of physics, formed the basis of his research) .n the early !79#s, Bose invented a type of speaker based on psychoacoustics, the study of sound perception) *is design incorporated multiple small speakers aimed at the surrounding walls, rather than directly at the listener, to reflect the sound and, in essence, recreate the larger sound heard in concert halls) .n !79/, at the urging of his mentor and adviser at (.6, :' ;ee, he founded his company to pursue longterm research in acoustics) 6he Bose Corp initially pursued military contracts, but Bose5s vision was to produce a new generation of stereo speakers) Although his first speakers fell short of e-pectations, Bose kept at it) .n !79+, he introduced the Bose 7#! <irect=>eflecting speaker system, which was a best seller for more than "8 years and firmly entrenched Bose, based in Framingham, (assachusetts, as a leader in a highly competitive audio components marketplace) ?nlike conventional loudspeakers, which radiated sound only forward, the 7#!s used a blend of direct and reflected sound) ;ater inventions included the popular Bose 'ave radio and the Bose noisecanceling headphones, which were so effective they were adopted by the military and commercial pilots) A Bose software program enabled acoustic engineers to simulate the sound from any seat in a large hall, even before the site was built) 6he system was used to create sound systems for such diverse spaces as 1taples Center in ;os Angeles, the 1istine Chapel and the (as@id al-*aram, the grand mosque in (ecca) .n !7+", some of the world5s top automakers, including (ercedes and 0orsche, began to install Bose audio systems in their vehicles, and the brand remains a favorite in that market segment) Bose5s devotion to research was matched by his passion for teaching) *aving earned his bachelor5s, master5s and doctorate degrees in electrical engineering at the (assachusetts .nstitute of 6echnology in the !78#s, Bose returned from a Fulbright scholarship at the Aational 0hysical ;aboratory in Aew <elhi and @oined the (.6 faculty in !789) *e taught there for more than /8 years, and in "#!!, donated a ma@ority of his company5s shares to the school) 6he gift provides (.6 with annual cash dividends) (.6 cannot sell the shares and does not participate in the company5s management) Bose made a lasting impression in the classroom as well as in his company) *is popular course on acoustics was as much about life as about electronics, said Alan , Bppenheim, an (.6 engineering professor and longtime colleague)

4*e talked not only about acoustics but about philosophy, personal behavior, what is important in life) *e was somebody with e-traordinary standards,4 Bppenheim said) <r 'illiam > Brody, head of the 1alk .nstitute in the ;a Colla neighborhood of 1an <iego, was a student in Bose5s class in !79") *e told 0opular 1cience3 4*is class gave me the courage to tackle high-risk problems and equipped me with the problem-solving skills . needed to be successful in several careers) Amar Bose taught me how to think)4 Amar Gopal Bose was born on Aovember ", !7"7, in 0hiladelphia) *is father, Aoni Gopal Bose, was a Bengali freedom fighter who was studying physics at Calcutta ?niversity when he was arrested and imprisoned for his opposition to British rule in .ndia) *e escaped and fled to the ?nited 1tates in !7"#, where he married an American schoolteacher) At age !%, Bose began repairing radio sets for pocket money for repair shops in 0hiladelphia) <uring 'orld 'ar .., when his father5s import business struggled, Bose5s electronics repairs helped support the family) After graduating from high school, Bose was admitted to (.6 in !7/$, where he studied under the mathematician Aorbert 'einer, along with ;ee) An avid badminton player and swimmer, Bose spent several weeks each year at his vacation home in *awaii) Bose and his e--wife, 0rema, had two children - ,anu, now the head of his own company, ,anu .nc in Cambridge, (assachusetts, and (aya Bose - who survive him, as does his second wife, ?rsula, and one grandchild)