Hans-Lukas Teuber (1916-1977) was one of the most influential neuropsychologists of his generation. In the first part of his career he headed the Psychophysiology Laboratory at the New York University--Bellevue Medical Center. There he and his associates played a major role in establishing human neuropsychology as a rigorous experimental science closely linked to contemporary neurophysiology and experimental psychology. In the second part of his career he founded the Department of Psychology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This rapidly became a world center of the neuro- and cognitive sciences and a model for the establishment of new neuroscience centers that brought together neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neuropsychology, and cognitive psychology into an interacting community. Teuber's contributions extended far beyond the institutions he founded and the many important experimental and theoretical papers he wrote. He was a consummate organizer, synthesizer, and sponsor of research on the brain, as well as the mentor of many of today's leading brain researchers. This special issue on object recognition and the temporal lobes is dedicated to his memory.