Vernon B. Mountcastle (1918–2015)

Vernon Mountcastle, born in 1918 in Shelbyville, Kentucky, was one of the giants of modern systems neuroscience who will be remembered for his ground-breaking research centered on the topics of perception and cognition. His impact on the field of neuroscience has been profound, not only for the discoveries he has made but also for the key role he has played in the founding, promoting, and nurturing of the field through training and service. He has been referred to by some as the father of neuroscience, and long-time Hopkins professor Sol Snyder credits him with producing "the first functional map of the neocortex" (NY Times, Jan. 17, 2015, B. Carey).