Fred Cummings (also known as Frederick W. Cummings; November 21, 1931 - January 31, 2019) was a theoretical physicist and professor at the University of California, Riverside. He specialised in cavity quantum electrodynamics, many-body theory, non-linear dynamics, and biophysics. Discoveries Cummings obtained his PhD with Edwin Thompson Jaynes at Stanford University in 1962. After thirty years at University of California Riverside Physics department, Cummings became emeritus professor in 1993. He then lived in Marin County, California. Some of his important discoveries include the "Jaynes–Cummings model", one atom interacting with a quantized e-m field; as well as the extension of this to N atoms, the "Tavis-Cummings model". In the last twenty years his interest has turned to questions of biophysics of development and evolution. Academic career Cummings was full professor at U.C. Riverside when he retired (emeritus) after thirty years at UCR. Research interests Biophysics of development Theoretical physics Cavity quantum electrodynamics Many-body theory Non-linear dynamics Education BS: Louisiana State University, 1955; Ph.D.: Stanford University, 1960 Biography Born, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1931 U.S. Army, 1950–1952, in infantry in Korea 1952–1955 LSU physics and math major (BS) 1955–1960 Physics Department, Stanford University (Ph.D.) 1960–1963 Aeronutronic Research Labs, Ford Motor Co., Newport Beach, California 1963–1993, professor, UCR, Riverside, California Married in 1964 to Kathleen Sturgis of Riverside, California; one child, Anne M. Cummings, M.D. (born February 14, 1966, in Riverside), presently living in Greenbrae, California, with her husband and three kids Fred died on January 31, 2019, in Marin County, CA: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/pe/obituary.aspx?n=frederick-w-cummings&pid=191508393 Selected publications F.W. Cummings, "Comparison of Quantum and Semiclassical Radiation Theories with application to the Beam Maser", PhD thesis, Stanford University, 1962. E.T. Jaynes and F.W. Cummings, "Comparison of Quantum and Semiclassical Radiation Theories with application to the Beam Maser", IEEE 51, 89 (1963). F.W. Cummings, "Interaction of a two level atom with a stochastic e-m field", Amer. J. Physics, (1963). E.R. Buley and F.W. Cummings, "Dynamics of a system of N atoms interacting with a radiation field", Phys. Rev. 44, (1964). F.W. Cummings, "A single mode radiation field coupled to a two level atom", Phys. Rev. 140 A1051 (1965). F.W. Cummings and J.R. Johnston, "Theory of Superfluidity", Phys. Rev. 151, 105 (1966), and reprinted in Coherent States: applications in Physics and Mathematical Physics, (eds. J.R. Klauder and Bo-Sture Skagerstam, World Scientific, Singapore 1985). M. Tavis and F.W. Cummings, "N atoms interacting with a single mode radiation field", Phys. Rev. 170,