FRANZ BOAS (1858-1942) Franz Boas, a pioneering social scientist, passed away on December 21, 1942, at the age of 84. Boas is widely considered the father of modern anthropology. His ground-breaking work included an emphasis on cultural relativism, which rejected any arguments that one culture was superior to another. He also championed the use of scientific data and methods to understand society and its customs, pioneering fieldwork as an important research tool for anthropologists. Additionally, his interest in immigrant and minority communities during the early 20th century helped pave the way for civil rights advances during the twentieth century. Born in Minden, Germany, Boas attended the universities of Heidelberg, Bonn, and Kiel, where he studied physics, mathematics, and geography. He earned his PhD from Kiel in 1881 for a dissertation that looked at the imaginative content of folktales. During his lifetime, Boas was widely published and lectured around the world. Boas also had a significant impact on the U.S. and Canadian educational system. After emigrating from Germany in 1886, he accepted various teaching and research positions at universities in the U.S. and Canada, ultimately becoming the first full-time professor of anthropology in the U.S. where he helped establish the American Anthropological Association in 1902. Boas' legacy and influence in the social sciences can still be seen today. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all those whose lives have been impacted by his unique contribution to the field of anthropology.