Caltech Mourns the Passing of Ted Scudder, 1930–2026

Thayer (Ted) Scudder, Caltech's only professor of anthropology for the latter half of the 20th century, passed away October 22 at the age of 96. He was regarded as a leading specialist on dams and their lasting effects on communities and global ecosystems. "Ted will be remembered as a world expert on the subject of forced population resettlement due to the construction of large dam projects," says economic anthropologist Jean Ensminger, Caltech's Edie and Lew Wasserman Professor of Social Sciences, Emeritus. "As a result of this work, Ted also developed a passion for the long-term study of a s