Long before I met Neil in person, his book shaped my understanding of condensed matter physics. I met Neil for the first time at the high pressure research GRC, when I was a graduate student with Jim Schilling. I recall how Neil and other pioneers of the high pressure would sit in the front row, and how I was all ears to understand their questions and discussions. Neil’s predictions on complex behavior of simple metals at extreme conditions defined the direction of my PhD research, my postdoctoral work and later my independent lab. Many years later, I still  clearly remember a lunchtime conversation that I had with Neil about an experiment I did on lithium in Jim’s group. Neil was genuinely interested in hearing about my experiment’s details, the potential pressure-induced metal-semiconductor transition in lithium (which was discovered some years later by Shimizu’s group). I even remember him explaining  the role of Umklapp processes in electrical resistivity of lithium. I had many conversations with Neil in later years and even had the opportunity to collaborate with him. Neil was an inspiration to the new generation of scientists and always sided with progress of science. His genuine excitement about new discoveries and his elegant and thoughtful elaborations will remain in the core of my scientific memories.

His predictions will continue to guide us for many years to come, and he will be greatly missed.