A beloved member of Cal's psychology department has died.
Geoffrey Keppel, a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, died on New Year's Eve. The university released details of his death Monday, saying it followed a long illness.
Keppel was 75 years old and died of lymphatic leukemia.
His research is credited for expanding our understanding of what causes humans to forget. Among other things, it helped demonstrate that forgetting is the result of interference from things such as past memories, various aspects of the current memory, and new memories.
Keppel was part of the Cal campus for nearly 50 years and colleagues say he will be dearly missed.
"The warmth, humor and concern for others that made him so fine a colleague and friend were among the qualities that made him so fine a teacher," said UC Berkeley psychology professor emeritus Jerry Mendelsohn.
Keppel leaves behind his wife of 54 years, Sheila Keppel. The two were high school sweethearts
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Plans for a memorial service are pending.
