John Conway was a research mentor of mine in high school — always kind and playful. He was like the Richard Feynman of mathematics.
John invented the game of life. He showed us that you can find stunning order amidst a sea of chaos. That simple rules can lead to complex behavior.
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John loved talking about his successes, but he loved his stupid games even more. He loved showing off his ability to tell you what day of the week a specific day was. January 24, 1984? It was a Tuesday. He could figure that out in three seconds.
He taught me not to get into the same fields that everyone else was interested in. He had seen a lot of smart young mathematicians get into Iwasawa theory after Andrew Wiles proved Fermat’s Last Theorem, and how all the low-hanging fruit was picked off by the time they learned the basics. Saved me a ton of wasted time.
I’m not sure I ever repaid my debt to him. I did one day teach him how to pronounce “Ramanujan” though — perhaps this will remain my greatest contribution to math.
I knew John in his 70’s, and even when he was in a wheelchair, he’d happily reach towards the chalkboard to share a new concept with us. He was so full of life.
RIP John. You played a great game buddy.