Barbara Jones

It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Barbara A. Jones, PhD, on September 24, 2024. She was a long-term active participant and member of the Aspen Center for Physics where she relished multidisciplinary interactions, fresh air, and hiking. She was one of the earliest female general members from 1994 – 2009, a trustee from 1996 – 2002, and an honorary member since 2009.

Born in Indianapolis (Indian Lake) on May 28, 1960 to Hugh M. Jones (immigrated Liverpool, England June 1954, Electrical Engineer, Western Electric) and Johanna M. Jones (immigrated Dec 1953, Gorlitz, Germany, Pastry Chef), Barbara was educated and excelled at Indianapolis Lawrence North High School class of 1978, achieving valedictorian, Presidential Scholar (top student 1978 Indiana), and Perfect SAT score while taking Saturday college classes at Butler and Ball State University.

She advanced her studies at Harvard University (A.B.), and Cambridge University (Certificate of Advanced Study in Mathematics). She completed her Ph.D. at Cornell University under the supervision of John Wilkins and in collaboration with Chandra Varma, then at Bell Laboratories. The “Jones-Varma” critical point, which she discovered in the course of her thesis research, remains an influential concept to this day. Following a postdoc at Harvard, she started (1989) and spent her professional career at the IBM Almaden research laboratory (San Jose, CA) where she did important work on spintronics, quantum computing, and viral evolution. She was a Senior Research in the IMB Quantum Applications and Computer group. She was involved with biophysics describing and developing viral thermonuclear evolution before the pandemic heightened the awareness and importance of this topic.

She was a tireless advocate for women in science (recipient of the TWIN Award, Tribute to Women in Industry) and was dedicated to connecting academic and industrial science. Chair and Founder of the APS/IBM Research Internships for Undergraduate Women and Under-represented Minorities, member and past Chair of the APS’s Committee on the Status of Women in Physics (1999-2002), and past Chair of the IBM Almaden Diversity Council, she was strongly interested in promoting opportunities in science and math for all students. With James Freericks, she established a joint venture in which graduate students from Georgetown University would spend a year at IBM. Dedicated to sustaining and improving science and society, she made important contributions to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, where she served as Chair of the Physics Section (B) from 2021-2024 and to the American Physical Society, particularly the Division of Condensed Matter Physics where she served as Chair in 2012-13 and led, with Susan Coppersmith, a task force to improve the “March Meeting”, the society’s main venue for scientific communication.

David Kessler, son of Barbara Jones, has coordinated a date for friends and acquaintances to meet and celebrate her life on Sunday, October 20th in Los Gatos, CA. Visitation from 1-4 and Celebration will be held at Chapel of the Hills.

Barbara will long be remembered for her smile and infectious enthusiasm; she will be deeply missed at the ACP.