Marshall Brain II, professor, director of the Engineering Entrepreneurs Program and founder of the award-winning website HowStuffWorks.com, died on November 20, 2024. He is remembered for his curiosity and the lives he influenced through his ability to explain complex topics clearly and to all audiences. He was known as a passionate advocate for the infusion of the principles of entrepreneurship as widely as possible at NC State and for teaching students to think creatively and outside the box in innovating engineering solutions.
“Marshall had a unique gift for explaining complicated theories and devices in ways that anyone could understand,” said Louis Martin-Vega, Dean Emeritus, NC State University College of Engineering. “He was an incredible teacher and mentor who inspired so many students to think outside the box and to believe in their ideas and entrepreneurial abilities.”
Brain earned his B.S. in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a master of science in computer science from NC State University, where he taught from 1986 to 1992. He started HowStuffWorks.com as a hobby in 1998, and it became an eventual global success and was acquired by Discovery Communications in 2007. Due to the success of the website, Brain later hosted and was featured on several TV shows. He also authored more than a dozen books.
In 2012, he returned to NC State as director of the Engineering Entrepreneurs Program (EEP), Part of NC State Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the program which will continue its mission to inspire, empower and challenge its students to change the world through entrepreneurial approaches to engineering problems.
EEP was founded by Distinguished Professor Emeritus Tom Miller. Miller first met Brain in the late 1980s when Brain was a master’s student at NC State.
“Through HowStuffWorks.com, Marshall had a profound impact, inspiring literally millions of young people around the world to learn about STEM,” Miller said. “That, combined with his entrepreneurial mindset and proven success, made him uniquely qualified to lead the EEP. Marshall could have done anything he wanted, and I’m so thankful that he chose to teach and mentor aspiring student entrepreneurs at NC State. That was his passion, and his impact was beyond measure.”
Brain is survived by his wife, Leigh Ann, and their four children. His full obituary is available online.
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