In Memoriam

Recent

Larry Seidman, 1950 - 2017

Larry was born and raised in New York city. He completed his undergraduate studies in psychology at City College of New York (CCNY) in 1971, an institution in which he had great pride. He received his doctorate at Boston University in 1980. He met Ilene Seidman, his wife of 46 years, when they were freshman at CCNY. They raised two children, Sarah, an historian and museum curator, and Josh, a lawyer. Before his death, Larry was blessed to meet his first grandson and first granddaughter.

Yue Chen, 1959 - 2017

Yue Chen, PhD, Director of the Visual Psychophysiology Laboratory at McLean Hospital and an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, died on 24 September 2017—his 58th birthday—from pancreatic cancer.

Irwin Kopin, 1929 - 2017 (PDF)

Kopin was a giant in catecholamine research. His groundbreaking findings on the characteristics and metabolism of catecholamines provided the backbone for major advances in neurological and psychiatric disorders. Born in 1929, Kopin graduated from The Bronx High School of Science in New York in 1946. He attended the City College of New York for 2 years and then transferred to McGill University in Canada, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry in 1951 and his medical degree in 1955. He began his NIH career as research assistant in the Laboratory of Clinical Science (LCS) at NIMH in 1957, under the direction of Seymour Kety.

Carmen Keith Conners, 1933 - 2017 (PDF)

Carmen Keith Conners died of heart failure in Durham, North Carolina on 5 July, 2017. He was 84 years old. He was a Fellow Emeritus of ACNP, having been elected to membership in 1970. Keith is widely recognized as a pioneer in the methodology of pediatric psychopharmacology, beginning with his work in the early 1960s on use of amphetamines and methylphenidate in children with disruptive behavior disorders. When Keith presented the seminal study with methylphenidate to the American Psychiatric Association meeting in St. Louis in May 1963, the discussant commented ‘This study has what can be called the new look in methods of assessing the effects of drugs on human behavior… specifically the behavior of children.’ Over time, the condition carried several diagnostic labels— from hyperkinesis or minimal brain dysfunction to ADHD today.

Robert McCarley, 1937 - 2017 (PDF)

Bob was born on 17 August 1937 in Mayfield, KY, and came to Harvard College in 1955 on a full scholarship at the age of 18. Except for one year, he never left. He graduated Summa cum laude and was elected to the Alpha Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. He then spent one year as a Fulbright Scholar in Psychology at Johannes Gutenberg Universitaet, Mainz, Germany. He was also a National Scholar at both Harvard College and Harvard Medical School.

Jaak Panksepp, 1942 - 2017 (PDF)

Jaak graduated with a BS in Psychology in 1965 from the University of Pittsburgh and received his Master of Science (1967) and Doctor of Philosophy (1969) degrees in Psychobiology/Neuroscience from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. The title of his dissertation was The Neural Basis of Aggression. Upon receiving his PhD, he received post-doctoral research fellowships from NSF and NIGMS to continue his studies at the University of Sussex in Brighton, England, followed by a NIMH post-doctoral fellowship at the Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology, Shrewsbury, MA. Upon completion of his postdoctoral training, in 1972, he joined the faculty at Bowling Green State University as an Assistant Professor and within five years had been promoted to a full professor, followed by promotion to a Distinguished Research Professor of Psychobiology in 1988, which he continued as an emeritus faculty member since 1998.

Steven Ferris, 1943 - 2017 (PDF)

Our friend and colleague Steven H Ferris, PhD, was the consummate ‘gentleman scholar’, who was an active member of ACNP since 1982. He was internationally recognized for his contributions to the cognitive assessment, pathophysiology, and treatment of patients with age-associated dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Jeffrey Nye, 1959 - 2017 (PDF)

On 6 March 2017, the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) as well as the broader neuroscience community lost one of its true luminaries, Jeffrey Scott Nye. A molecular pharmacologist, pediatric neurologist, and pharmaceutical innovator, Jeff made countless contributions in service to so many over the course of his distinguished career. Whether at the bench, the bedside, or the boardroom, Jeff exhibited a stunning intellect, personable manner, and business acumen that were as much innate as learned. Whatever the setting, he brought a virtually indefatigable energy and commitment to a host of noble causes, from scientific discovery and the care of patients, to the development of transformational new therapies and the collaborations required to realize them. Above all, Jeff will be remembered for the countless lives he touched, as a mentor, colleague, and friend.

Martin Katz, 1927 - 2017 (PDF)

Dr. Katz was born on 6 August 1927, in Brooklyn, received his AB in Chemistry from Brooklyn College, in 1949, and his PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Texas, in 1954. Three years later, he held the position of Executive Secretary of the First Psychopharmacology Advisory Committee of the National Institutes of Health, which was instrumental in establishing a Psychopharmacology Service Center (PSC). It was at the PSC that he developed the Katz Adjustment Scales.