In Memoriam
Tom Cornsweet
Professor of Cognitive Sciences
UC Irvine
1929-2017
Vision scientists will be sorry to learn that Tom Cornsweet died on November 11 2017, at age 88, in Prescott Arizona, his home for many years. His death followed a long illness and was not unexpected. After earning a Ph.D. from Brown in 1955, Tom taught at Yale and the University of California, Berkeley, and finally the University of California, Irvine, where he held appointments in the departments of Cognitive Sciences, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Ophthalmology. He retired from UCI in 1999, but remained active in applied research and development on ophthalmic instruments, as he had been throughout his career—his early work on eye tracking and image stabilization at the Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International) in the 1960s and 70s led eventually in 1973 to the first commercially viable automated refracting device, the Acuity Systems 6600 Auto-Refractor. Altogether he obtained 40 patents. His final official position, from 2013-2015, was Chief Scientist at Brien Holden Vision Diagnostics, where he continued to develop ophthalmic instruments of his own invention.
In basic vision science Tom is probably best known today for his discovery of the remarkable brightness phenomenon known generally as the Cornsweet Illusion (or sometimes the Craik O’Brien Cornsweet Illusion, acknowledging earlier investigators). He described and analyzed this effect in his classic 1970 textbook, Visual Perception, which has always been widely regarded as a model of scientific exposition. This is especially true of its treatment of color vision—even today it remains arguably the best starting point for understanding color matching phenomena—and also for clarifying the distinction between visual phenomena, like color matching, where genuine scientific explanation is possible, and other phenomena, such as color appearance, where the private nature of subjective experience makes it unclear how the usual tools of science can be applied. Along with scientific hardware—lenses and such—Tom had a great passion for rigor in scientific thinking, which he shared (indeed, insisted on) with his students (Davida Teller being best known) and colleagues. Those fortunate to work with him always found it a uniquely valuable experience—one is tempted to say even ennobling. He will be greatly missed as a scientist and as a friend.
Jack Yellott, Professor Emeritus
Department of Cognitive Sciences, UC Irvine
In basic vision science Tom is probably best known today for his discovery of the remarkable brightness phenomenon known generally as the Cornsweet Illusion (or sometimes the Craik O’Brien Cornsweet Illusion, acknowledging earlier investigators). He described and analyzed this effect in his classic 1970 textbook, Visual Perception, which has always been widely regarded as a model of scientific exposition. This is especially true of its treatment of color vision—even today it remains arguably the best starting point for understanding color matching phenomena—and also for clarifying the distinction between visual phenomena, like color matching, where genuine scientific explanation is possible, and other phenomena, such as color appearance, where the private nature of subjective experience makes it unclear how the usual tools of science can be applied. Along with scientific hardware—lenses and such—Tom had a great passion for rigor in scientific thinking, which he shared (indeed, insisted on) with his students (Davida Teller being best known) and colleagues. Those fortunate to work with him always found it a uniquely valuable experience—one is tempted to say even ennobling. He will be greatly missed as a scientist and as a friend.
Jack Yellott, Professor Emeritus
Department of Cognitive Sciences, UC Irvine
