Geoff Hunter: Difference between revisions
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Geoff Hunter was | '''Geoff Hunter''' (1933 – 18 December 2018) was an American mechanical engineer who worked for the aerospace company '''Rocketdyne''', and who in later life brought that engineering skill to the '''gravity experiment''' devised by Dr. [[Ricardo Carezani]] to test whether gravity is carried by a particle. He designed the mechanical arm at the heart of the apparatus, co-authored the resulting paper, and appeared as one of the central figures in the feature-length documentary ''[[Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year]]''. | ||
Outside the laboratory he was a percussionist of some standing, playing for nearly twenty years with a Los Angeles samba school and performing in the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro. | |||
== | ==Professional life== | ||
Hunter spent his career as a mechanical engineer at '''Rocketdyne''', the rocket-engine manufacturer. He described the work there with characteristic understatement: that they used to blow up rockets all the time, and then go and find the pieces to work out what had gone wrong — a description that captures the empirical, failure-driven engineering temperament he later brought to the gravity experiment. | |||
In 1966 he bought a remote house in Malibu, a decision his colleagues questioned at the time given the distances he would have to commute. He kept it for the rest of his life. | |||
==The gravity experiment== | |||
Hunter took part in the gravity experiment designed by Dr. [[Ricardo Carezani]], the originator of [[Autodynamics]], whose purpose was to test whether gravity is caused by a particle — a '''graviton''' — by attempting to detect its effect directly. | |||
Hunter's contribution was the '''mechanical arm''': the pendulum assembly on which the detection depended, and precisely the part of the apparatus that demanded a professional engineer rather than a physicist. He co-authored the paper reporting the findings with [[Bob de Hilster|Robert de Hilster]] and [[David de Hilster]], presented in 2007 to the [[Natural Philosophy Alliance]] at the University of Connecticut — see ''[[Gravity Experiment 1 ]]''. | |||
The experiment connects to the wider particle-based account of gravity developed by [[Bob de Hilster|Robert de Hilster]], in which gravity is a pushing force carried by real particles rather than an attraction; see [[Particle Model]]. | |||
==''Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year''== | |||
Hunter was one of the main figures in ''[[Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year]]'', the documentary directed by [[David de Hilster]], appearing on screen in the gravity-experiment sequences and elsewhere, including a museum visit. He also worked behind the camera as a '''production assistant''', handling the boom microphone — an unusual double role, and a practical one in keeping with his character. | |||
==Music== | ==Music== | ||
== | Hunter was an avid collector and player of percussion instruments from around the world. He delighted in acquiring them and sharing them with others, and would cheerfully admit, with a grin, when he could not actually play one. | ||
He was an early member of the Los Angeles samba school [http://www.sambala.org SambaLá], where he played for close to twenty years, principally the '''surdo''' — the large bass drum that carries the underlying pulse of a samba bateria. [[David de Hilster]], who played alongside him, has written of the particular pleasure of playing solo surdo supported by Geoff's steady second surdo behind it. | |||
He performed in the inaugural launch production for Kia Motors' Rio car in Seoul, South Korea, and in 2000 played in the drum corps of [http://wiki.worldsamba.org/index.php?title=Unidos_do_Mundo Unidos do Mundo] in the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, where his wife Maija appeared as ''porta-bandeira'', the flag-bearer. | |||
==Personal life== | |||
Hunter married Maija after a spontaneous decision in Las Vegas; the marriage lasted sixty years. They had two sons, and lived in Malibu, where their property stood among those of well-known Hollywood figures. He died of heart failure in December 2018. | |||
In a tribute written after his death, David de Hilster described him as an "ordinary yet extraordinary man" — someone marked by an evident contentment and an unshakeable steadiness, qualities as visible in the machine shop and behind a drum as they were in front of a camera. | |||
==Abstracts== | ==Abstracts== | ||
* 2007 - "[[Gravity Experiment 1 ]]" | * 2007 - "[[Gravity Experiment 1 ]]" | ||
==External links== | |||
* [https://dehilster.com/a-star-among-superstars/ "A Star Among Superstars"] — David de Hilster's tribute to Geoff Hunter | |||
==See also== | |||
* [[Ricardo Carezani]] | |||
* [[Autodynamics]] | |||
* [[Bob de Hilster]] | |||
* [[Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year]] | |||
[[Category:Scientist|Hunter Geoff]] | [[Category:Scientist|Hunter Geoff]] | ||
[[Category:Gravity|Hunter Geoff]] | |||
Latest revision as of 20:36, 20 July 2026
Geoff Hunter | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 1, 1933 |
| Died | December 18, 2018 (aged 85) |
| Residence | Malibu, CA, United States |
| Nationality | USA |
| Known for | Gravity, Autodynamics |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Mechanical Engineer |
Geoff Hunter (1933 – 18 December 2018) was an American mechanical engineer who worked for the aerospace company Rocketdyne, and who in later life brought that engineering skill to the gravity experiment devised by Dr. Ricardo Carezani to test whether gravity is carried by a particle. He designed the mechanical arm at the heart of the apparatus, co-authored the resulting paper, and appeared as one of the central figures in the feature-length documentary Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year.
Outside the laboratory he was a percussionist of some standing, playing for nearly twenty years with a Los Angeles samba school and performing in the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro.
Professional life
Hunter spent his career as a mechanical engineer at Rocketdyne, the rocket-engine manufacturer. He described the work there with characteristic understatement: that they used to blow up rockets all the time, and then go and find the pieces to work out what had gone wrong — a description that captures the empirical, failure-driven engineering temperament he later brought to the gravity experiment.
In 1966 he bought a remote house in Malibu, a decision his colleagues questioned at the time given the distances he would have to commute. He kept it for the rest of his life.
The gravity experiment
Hunter took part in the gravity experiment designed by Dr. Ricardo Carezani, the originator of Autodynamics, whose purpose was to test whether gravity is caused by a particle — a graviton — by attempting to detect its effect directly.
Hunter's contribution was the mechanical arm: the pendulum assembly on which the detection depended, and precisely the part of the apparatus that demanded a professional engineer rather than a physicist. He co-authored the paper reporting the findings with Robert de Hilster and David de Hilster, presented in 2007 to the Natural Philosophy Alliance at the University of Connecticut — see Gravity Experiment 1 .
The experiment connects to the wider particle-based account of gravity developed by Robert de Hilster, in which gravity is a pushing force carried by real particles rather than an attraction; see Particle Model.
Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year
Hunter was one of the main figures in Einstein Wrong - The Miracle Year, the documentary directed by David de Hilster, appearing on screen in the gravity-experiment sequences and elsewhere, including a museum visit. He also worked behind the camera as a production assistant, handling the boom microphone — an unusual double role, and a practical one in keeping with his character.
Music
Hunter was an avid collector and player of percussion instruments from around the world. He delighted in acquiring them and sharing them with others, and would cheerfully admit, with a grin, when he could not actually play one.
He was an early member of the Los Angeles samba school SambaLá, where he played for close to twenty years, principally the surdo — the large bass drum that carries the underlying pulse of a samba bateria. David de Hilster, who played alongside him, has written of the particular pleasure of playing solo surdo supported by Geoff's steady second surdo behind it.
He performed in the inaugural launch production for Kia Motors' Rio car in Seoul, South Korea, and in 2000 played in the drum corps of Unidos do Mundo in the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, where his wife Maija appeared as porta-bandeira, the flag-bearer.
Personal life
Hunter married Maija after a spontaneous decision in Las Vegas; the marriage lasted sixty years. They had two sons, and lived in Malibu, where their property stood among those of well-known Hollywood figures. He died of heart failure in December 2018.
In a tribute written after his death, David de Hilster described him as an "ordinary yet extraordinary man" — someone marked by an evident contentment and an unshakeable steadiness, qualities as visible in the machine shop and behind a drum as they were in front of a camera.
Abstracts
- 2007 - "Gravity Experiment 1 "
External links
- "A Star Among Superstars" — David de Hilster's tribute to Geoff Hunter