Sandy C. Shaw was born September 26, 1954 in Houston, Texas to Muriel Rachel Shaw and Harold Shaw. For over twenty-five years, Sandy worked at both public and private institutions as a computer scientist and software engineer. His contributions include work pioneering cellular phone service, patents in data analysis and biotechnology, and early research on Complexity Theory.
In the late 1980s, Sandy began developing fractal data compression algorithms for commercial use. In 2001 he founded Fractal Genomics, a venture that eventually led to the discovery of biomarkers related to AIDS and leukemia. After several years as an independent software developer, consultant, and algorithmic trader, Sandy formed Prime Genomics, which uses genome-wide analysis to diagnose cancer with saliva samples.
To those who knew him well, Sandy's curiosity seemed endless. Whether on movies or politics or the calculus of colors, Sandy would talk with you for hours, elucidating your thoughts in his own respectful and brilliant way. But to others, Sandy's depth and character was easy to miss. So humble and reserved-always wearing a modest beige raincoat and unkept silver hair-most never heard that Sandy once got lost while descending the Klein Matterhorn alone at night and that he used to swim with dolphins in the La Perouse Bay. This is no surprise. Sandy devoted his life to simplifying complexity in a chaotic world. His patience and unparalleled compassion explain why he did this so well.
Sandy passed away March 22nd, 2015. For almost twenty years, Sandy lived in San Francisco with his partner, Devorah Canter. He is survived by Devorah, her children Aryeh, Aron, and Jacob, his nephew Avalon Shaw, and his sister-in-law Jennifer Jaegle. A funeral was held at the Home of Peace Cemetery on Tuesday, March 24th with colleagues, family and friends.