Michael Webster

Professor Webster’s interest in color vision is rooted in his undergraduate work at the University of California, San Diego. He went on to a Ph.D. in Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley and then was a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Cambridge, UK. In 1994 he joined the faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno, where he rapidly rose to a Foundation Professorship in the Department of Psychology with affiliations to graduate programs in Cognitive & Brain Sciences and Integrative Neuroscience, which he helped found and co-directs. He is a fellow of the Optical Society of America.

His research on color vison includes a steady stream of influential papers over the past 30 years. Two themes recur over the decades: adaptation and individual differences. His novel adaptation designs have advanced our understanding of the multiple pathways that mediate color perception, including color constancy and changes across the life span. The comprehensive breadth of his work on individual differences encompasses color matching, unique hues and color naming. Professor Webster is a beloved teacher and mentor.  He has made also exceptional contributions to his peers and the field by serving on NSF and NIH grant review panels, as an editor of Vision Research, as the color vision editor for the Journal of the Optical Society of America A, and as chair of the Color Technical Group of the Optical Society of America. He recently was elected to the board of directors of both the Vision Sciences Society and ICVS, reflecting the high regard of his colleagues.