Kenneth J. Cohen ’64

Ken died peacefully June 10, 2013, at his home in Cranford, N.J. With eternal optimism he fought a long and courageous battle with Parkinson’s disease, with his devoted wife, Phyllis, and other family members at his side throughout.

Ken came to Princeton from Bridgeton (N.J.) High School, having spent a year in France as an exchange student. He was a principal clarinetist in both the marching and concert bands and was a member of Terrace Club. After graduating cum laude in physics, Ken earned a Ph.D. from MIT in 1967 and furthered his interest in high-energy/elementary-particle physics through a postdoc in Germany.

Ken’s varied career encompassed teaching and high-energy research at Rutgers and wireless-systems engineering as a distinguished member of the technical staff at Bell Laboratories (later Lucent Technologies). After retiring from Lucent in 2001, he continued his contributions to today’s ubiquitous wireless devices as an independent contractor until 2009.

Ken enjoyed traveling the world and frequent visits to Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera with Phyllis, family beach vacations, fine art, food and wine, and diverse intellectual challenges.

The class extends sympathy to Phyllis and her daughter, Catherine Sotolongo; Ken’s son, Matthew; and his two grandsons.