Famous People Who Died Today

Akira Toriyama is a Japanese character designer and manga artist. The creator of one of the most popular manga series of all time, Dragon Ball, Akira Toriyama is widely considered one of the most influential artists to have changed the history of manga; his creation Dragon Ball is often cited as a source of inspiration by several manga artists.

Saint David was a Welsh bishop who lived during the 6th century. His life and teachings inspired Welsh composer Sir Karl William Pamp Jenkins to come up with a choral work titled Dewi Sant. David's teachings also inspired another composer named Arwel Hughes, who composed an oratorio titled Dewi Sant in 1950. David is considered the patron saint of Wales.

George Herbert was an orator, poet, and priest of the Church of England. Although he is regarded as one of the most important British devotional lyricists, Herbert's poetry is often associated with the works of popular metaphysical poets. He was also a collector of proverbs and his collection was published in 1640.

Francisco Solano López was a Paraguayan politician who served as the president of Paraguay from 1862 to 1870. Before becoming a leader, López played an important role in the Platine Wars where he fought against Juan Manuel de Rosas, serving in the Paraguayan Army. A controversial figure, Solano López is sometimes held responsible for the outbreak of the Paraguayan War. 

Zhores Ivanovich Alferov was a Soviet and Russian academic and physicist whose work, which led to the formation of semiconductor heterostructures, earned him the 2000 Nobel Prize in Physics. Alferov's work helped revolutionize semiconductor design, which in turn played a major role in the development of satellite communications and mobile phones.

Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff was a Dutch physical chemist best remembered for winning the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Van 't Hoff's work helped found the modern theory of chemical thermodynamics, chemical kinetics, chemical equilibrium, and chemical affinity. A highly popular theoretical chemist, Van 't Hoff is also counted among the founders of physical chemistry.

Alexandre Yersin was a physician and bacteriologist. He is credited with co-discovering Yersinia pestis, the bacillus that causes the bubonic plague. Also an agriculturist, Yersin pioneered the cultivation of rubber trees. He is revered by the Vietnamese people because of his association with Hanoi Medical University; a private university in Da Lat is named in his honor.

Iranian Paralympic powerlifter Siamand Rahman was not just a 2-time Paralympic champion but had also won the Asian Para Games and the IPC Powerlifting World Championships thrice each. He scripted history by breaking the 300kg barrier but stunned the world with his death due to cardiac arrest at 31.

Called the founder of experimental biology and father of modern parasitology, Italian physician, biologist, naturalist and poet Francesco Redi did the first major experiment to challenge spontaneous generation. His book Esperienze intorno alla generazione degl'insetti includes most of his famous experiments, while his poem book Bacco in Toscana is counted among the finest works of 17th-century Italian poetry.   

Known for literary works like Il Piacere and La Gioconda, Italian journalist, poet and playwright Gabriele D'Annunzio dominated the second period of Italian Decadentism. He became a national war hero during the First World War. His political endeavours include establishing and leading the short-lived Italian Regency of Carnaro in Fiume. He is often described as the forerunner of Italian fascism.  

Polish-American scholar Alfred Korzybski had initially been sent to the U.S. by the Russian intelligence services. After the fall of the tsarist rule, he stayed back in the U.S. The pioneer of general semantics, he believed human knowledge is shaped by one’s linguistic reach and the nervous system.

Hungarian mathematician Paul Nemenyi is best remembered for his contribution to fluid dynamics through his inverse or semi-inverse approach. The continuum mechanics specialist taught in Berlin and the US. In 2002, an investigation revealed he was the biological father of chess legend Bobby Fischer and not Hans-Gerhardt Fischer.

Nicaraguan priest Ernesto Cardenal was one of the most significant poets of his country. His works despised American imperialism and capitalism and used slogans as symbols. He was also part of the Sandinista Front that removed Anastasio Somoza, following which he became the minister of culture in the new cabinet.

Francisco de Almeida was a Portuguese nobleman, explorer, and soldier. He served as a counsellor to John II of Portugal and played an important role during the conquest of Granada and in the battles against the Moors. Francisco de Almeida also served as the first viceroy and governor of Portuguese India in the early 1500s.

Anton Hansen Tammsaare was an Estonian writer best remembered for his pentalogy Truth and Justice, which is counted among the most important works of Estonian literature. He achieved international fame after the release of his novel Devil with a False Passport, which was adapted into a film of the same name.