Sufian Husseini passed away late December 30, 2017 in Salem, Oregon, after months of health struggles. He was a faculty member from 1961 until his retirement in 2001.
Sufian obtained his PhD at Princeton under Norman Steenrod and was an instructor at MIT before moving to Madison. His research was primarily in algebraic topology, on topics such as loop spaces and configuration spaces. He established a long term collaboration with Ed Fadell (also a UW-Madison colleague) and together they wrote a number of beautiful and influential papers exploring applications of algebraic topology to diverse topics in analysis, manifold theory, economics and mathematical physics. Their joint monograph Geometry and Topology of Configuration Spaces published in 2001 by Springer is a highly regarded reference.
Sufian was a source of knowledge and inspiration for students and faculty alike and known for his astute insight in mathematics and beyond. Together with his wife Barbara he generously hosted many mathematicians and contributed in important ways to our department for forty years.