Message Chris was a great man, the most inspiring, generous and caring supervisor to me and my family during my PhD with him and years after. We will miss him deeply.

Message I mourn the loss of a kind & caring man . I have known him for 10 years and found him to be personable and engaging. He recalled previous conversations on the last time we met in College Hall and clearly had an outstanding memory to accompany his great intellect.
I offer my sincere condolences to his wife and family and also to the College Fellowship
May he rest in peace.
Charles DesForges /1961

Message Thank you for inviting us to the Master's Lodge, your home, for some many amazing concerts.

Message I was so sad to hear of Chris's passing. He wore his scientific eminence lightly, and combined it with such amazing empathy and generosity. I shall always remember his kindness - and his patient understanding! - when for a time he was my supervisor thirty years ago. It was a privilege to have met him, and my heart goes out to Mary, Richard and William.

Message Chris influenced and enriched so many of our lives, and beyond the scientific community. His modesty, gentleness, patience and genuine interest in everyone he met remained a constant - alongside his ever increasing academic achievements and awards. I will always remember his positive attitude (experiments could never go completely wrong!), kindness and brilliant mind.
Mary, Richard and William, thinking of you all at this sad time.

Karen Topping LMH, 1981-88

Message It has been a shock to learn about Chris’ departure.
I am deeply grateful to him for his encouragement and support during all the years I spent at his lab and later during our joint spell as entrepreneurs.
He welcomed me wholeheartedly in his team so many years ago when I was barely able to build a few sentences in English. He saw in me the potential I had yet to discover myself. Always supportive and encouraging, always believing in me.
I have not found someone that combines in such a way scientific rigour with endless imagination and creativity. There was nothing truly ‘impossible’ for him and his enthusiasm to keep learning, to work with others, to build new opportunities, to be bold enough to go into unchartered territories, cast him apart from other scientists.
He taught me to seek the right questions, to find the story behind dry results, to aim higher. His talent in writing was remarkable and those endless article revisions showed me how precision in writing is the key to open that connection with the audience. How to present work in a way that opens an opportunity for exchange, for growth for new challenges. I learned from him to build a vision, how to create new paradigms, how to always aim higher, better…
His stature as a scientist and innovator was matched by a tremendous generosity and commitment to others. He always saw the potential in others. He encouraged me to pursue a career in the industry and cannot think where I would be now, hadn’t I had the fortune of having him as a mentor during of those years. He saw beyond cultural barriers and treated everyone with the utmost respect.
Perhaps most importantly he taught me how important is to empathise with the human being in front of me every time I communicate with others. How it is all about enjoying life, enjoying our time with others. Being open to the possibility of discovering something remarkable in every interaction with another human being.
I am also so grateful to Mary and his sons for their generosity in allowing us sharing his time, often at the expense of their own family time, even at times where the family was going through difficult times.
Chris’ legacy both scientific and human will always be with us and future generations.
Let us honour the memory of a remarkable human being.

Message It was just today (Sept 23) that I heard that Chris Dobson had passed away. I am very sorry to hear that. Chris and I had many conversations about protein structure and folding over the years. I always found him a pleasure to talk to: interested. responsive and thoughtful. I will miss him.

Message Very sad news - a great man, and a great legacy.

Message Chris was an inspirational leader. I heard him speak about his vision for the college at an alumni dinner in London shortly after he became Master, and I was bowled over. The college's successful fundraising would suggest he had the same effect on many others. He wasn't grand, though - he and Mary put me up at the Master's Lodge on one occasion, and made me feel right at home. He is a great loss to the college and to his field of research, as well as to his family and friends. I am sorry we won't see him again. But I am sure his legacy will be that the work he started will continue, and will make a difference. His life made a big impact in the world, perhaps we don't yet know how great.

Message Such a privilege to know Chris and his family as a friend; his death is a huge loss to science, The university of Cambridge and to all his family and his friends.