Ernest E. Pittelli, 91, of Belmont MA, died on October 16, 2023, at
Rogerson House, his place of residence for the past three years, in
Boston.
He was the son of Stephen Pittelli and Catherine (Gatto) Pittelli, both
of whom emigrated to the United States as children. Ernest’s boyhood was
spent in Kulpmont PA, while his father was a coal miner, and later in
Philadelphia, where his parents operated a grocery store.
He graduated from Villanova and earned a PhD in theoretical physics from
the University of Pennsylvania. During the Apollo moon program he worked
at NASA’s Electronics Research Center in Cambridge MA, researching
semiconductors that can operate in high-temperature and high-radiation
environments. When the center was closed during the Nixon
Administration, he began his 30-year career of teaching physics,
astronomy, and philosophy of science at Middlesex School, in Concord.
After Ernest’s retirement, in 2000, he continued to exercise his
outstanding classroom skills by leading numerous courses at the Harvard
Institute for Learning in Retirement, where he was once awarded a
standing ovation. His primary interest at that stage in life was
history, and he often said that he wished he’d chosen history over
physics. His heroes were Guiseppe Garibaldi and Bertrand Russell;
Russell had a profound influence on Ernest’s philosophy of life.
He is survived by his partner of 34 years, Martha Spaulding; his
brother, Joseph Pittelli, sister-in-law Jan Pittelli, and brother-in-law
Cosmo DiCecco; his children by his ex-wife Alexandra Wilson: Lauren,
David, and Randal Pittelli; David’s wife, Amy Stevens, and their
children Catherine and Alexander Pittelli; and Martha’s daughter Rachel
Greenberger, and her husband, Cristiano Bonino.
Donations in his memory may be made to Rogerson House, 434 Jamaicaway,
Boston MA 02130.