C. "Cliff" Chancey

Dr. C. Clifton "Cliff" Chancey III CEDAR FALLS-Dr. C. Clifton "Cliff" Chancey III, 58, of Cedar Falls, died Saturday, October 19, 2013 in Cedar Falls. He was born September 3, 1955, in Cincinnati, Ohio, son of Charles C. and Carol R. (Casto) Chancey Jr. Dr. Chancey received his B.S. at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 1977 and his M.A. (1980) and Ph.D. (1985) at Johns Hopkins University. From 1985 to 1988 he held a postdoctoral research position at Oxford University in England. He went on to hold academic positions at Amherst College and Purdue University –Calumet. He held a Senior Visiting Fellowship in Theoretical Physics at Oxford in 1996. In 2001, he joined the faculty at UNI as professor and head of the physics department. He held numerous offices/appointments at local, regional and national levels. A referee for a number of journals, he authored 27 research papers and co-authored (with M.C.M. O'Brien) The Jahn-Teller Effect in C60 and Other Icosahedral Complexes (Princeton U. Press, 1997). A Life Member of Sigma Xi since 1990, Chancey was also a member of the Iowa Academy of Science, American Physical Society, American Association of Physics Teachers, Council on Undergraduate Research, Biophysical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Mathematical Association of America and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. He served Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society, in many capacities at the local, regional and national levels. A theoretical physicist, his interests included atomic and molecular theory, biophysical modeling and neuroscience, mathematical physics, and geophysical modeling. His most recent atomic and molecular research centered on explaining the electronic and vibrational structure of Buckminsterfullerene, the soccer ball-shaped molecule C60. He studied the physics of sand movement in sand dunes and the electrical and physical processes involved in neural transmission. Much of his research was directed toward providing a theory for sodium and potassium channel gating in excitable cells like neurons. Dr. Chancey will always be remembered for his kindness, humility, and his devotion to academe. His research, teaching and service to the discipline of physics will impact many future Physics researchers, teachers and scholars. Survived by: his twin brother, R. David (H. Douglas Guevara) Chancey of Middleburgh, NY; a sister, Cynthia A. (Tony) Luca of Cincinnati, OH; and two nephews, Matthew and Benjamin Guevara-Chancey. Preceded in death by: his parents. Services: 10:30 a.m. Saturday at First United Methodist Church with burial in Fairview Cemetery, both in Cedar Falls. Visitation from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at Richardson Funeral Service and also for one hour prior to services Saturday at the church. Memorials may be directed to the University of Northern Iowa Foundation for the C. Clifton Chancey Scholarship Fund.

C. "Cliff" Chancey

September 3, 1955 - October 19, 2013