IEEE Solid-States Circuits Magazine - Winter 2021 - 70

A True Renaissance Man
I first met Jim Meindl when we were both serving on the board of directors
of Zoran. A genuinely nice guy, soft-spoken, and appearing almost shy but always directly on point, he also seemed like the perfect person to do an assessment of the technical feasibility of a semiconductor idea that Eli Harari had introduced to Irwin Federman and me as prospective venture capital investors.
Eli's idea was that he believed he had a fundamental design approach to
a problem that many had tried for years to solve but had never succeeded:
a fast, nonvolatile, rewriteable memory chip. I had just read the Scientific
American cover story that Jim had authored on the history and future of
semiconductor technology, so he seemed, indeed, like the perfect person
to assess Eli's idea, although it would involve his getting really down in
the quantum mechanical weeds to see if the concept would actually work.
I asked Jim to take a look at it for us (what turned out to be " flash "
memory). Jim was initially skeptical but spent a full day with Eli and reported back, in his typical humble and understated way, that the physics
and other technical concepts were indeed sound.
We invested, and we asked Jim to join both the board of what became
SanDisk, where he served for years offering sage advice at the highest
of strategic levels as well as on detailed technical issues, and a new
technical advisory board that we were forming at U.S. Venture Partners
(USVP). This USVP advisory board was intended as a small working

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Date of current version: 25 January 2021

group of four or five senior technologists from various disciplines who
would meet once a quarter to educate us on IT-related and biomedical
technologies that were still just over the horizon but that would have
important implications longer term.
The advisory board included the head of IBM Research, an Internet
pioneer and guru at Harvard, the CEO of Amgen, the former chairman
of the Santa Fe Institute, and Jim. The idea was that one member of the
board would come up with the topic once a year and introduce us to a
prominent person in that area to make a presentation and then discuss
how and when that new development would be important.
Jim showed us all, over the 10 or so years he served, that he was a true
Renaissance man, quiet and thoughtful, with insights in so many different disciplines, from quantum computing to biological processes to thorny
personnel and corporate strategic issues. He was disarmingly modest and a
real " regular guy " -if you ran into him on the golf course or at the bar, you
would never suspect that he was such an accomplished mental giant. I feel
fortunate to have known and worked with him. He was a gem.
-Phil Young
About the Author
Phil Young received his B.M.E. degree in mechanical and nuclear engineering
from Cornell University, his M.S. degree in engineering physics from George
Washington University, and his M.B.A. degree from Harvard University. He
served as a managing partner at U.S. Venture Partners for 20 years, raising US$2.5
billion for early-stage ventures, and he continues as a senior advisor.

Family
Much-Loved Husband and Father
It is with heavy hearts that we said goodbye to a much-loved husband
and father (Figure S1). He was a kind and gentle soul and yet determined to forge his way. None of us could have imagined the life that he
embraced, which centered around his gifted and talented students and
his rewarding research. His students became our extended family and
brought him endless joy and pride, and we thank you.
His work ethic, laser-focused questions, moral fiber, and love were as
evident and memorable to us as his trademark haircut, briefcase, and
jacket/tie. It is so heartwarming to know that the same motivation and
thoughtful guidance he gave his family at home was also appreciated by
his students and colleagues.
We extend our sincere appreciation for the efforts put forth in Jim's
memory. We are truly humbled.

is a founding member of the Kepos Capital hedge fund team. He and his wife,
Sarah, have twin sons, Jamie and Eric, who are studying at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology and Washington University, respectively. Jim's daughter,
Candace Fleming, received her B.S. and B.A. degrees from Stanford University
and her M.B.A. degree from Harvard University; she is COO of Monti Kids. She
and her husband, Lee, have a daughter, Piper, in high school and son, Grady,
in middle school.

-Frederica Meindl and family
About the Authors
Frederica Meindl, Jim's wife of 59 years, met him when she was the secretary for his commanding officer at the Fort Monmouth Army Electronics Labs.
Jim's son, Peter Meindl, received his B.S., B.A., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees from
Stanford University and his M.B.A. degree from Northwestern University; he
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MSSC.2020.3036291
Date of current version: 25 January 2021

W I N T E R 2 0 2 1

IEEE SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS MAGAZINE

FIGURE S1: Jim and Frederica Meindl with their children and
grandchildren.

IEEE Solid-States Circuits Magazine - Winter 2021

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