Bede Liu

Bede Liu, who was hailed as one of the pioneers of digital signal processing, died peacefully after a brief illness on May 7 in Princeton Medical Center, New Jersey. He was 91.

Born in Shanghai, China, in 1934, Bede studied at the National Taiwan University (Taipei, B.S.E.E. 1954) and at the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn (M.E.E. 1956, D.E.E. 1960). Bede’s father, Henry Liu, also attended Poly and received his M.E.E. in 1956 at the same commencement as Bede. This was reported by the Daily News in its June 12, 1956 article, “1st Father-Son Team To Get Poly Degrees.”

Bede was awarded a Bell Laboratories fellowship in 1959 and worked there until 1962, when he joined the faculty of Princeton University. With his mentor Professor John B. Thomas, he “built the information sciences and systems group, which, to this day, is one of the crown jewels in electrical engineering [at Princeton].” He became emeritus in July 2015 and continued to teach undergraduate classes before fulling retiring in 2018. Throughout his 56 years at Princeton, he cared deeply for his undergraduate and graduate students, who in return regarded him as a role model and mentor, and regularly sought his advice long after they graduated. He supervised and co-supervised 53 Ph.D.s, most of whom have been successful in their fundamental contributions to signal processing, video coding, and multimedia. He loved Princeton for “giving me a stimulating and supportive environment.”

Bede coauthored two books on digital signal processing and multimedia data hiding. He also published 250 technical papers — the last one when he was 80 years old — and was granted 12 U.S. patents. He received numerous awards from two IEEE societies, culminating in the Jack S. Kilby Signal Processing Medal (2018) for “his pioneering concepts for time and power-efficient implementation of digital signal processing algorithms that have an impact on our daily lives.” He was a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering for “contributions to the analysis and implementation of digital signal processing algorithms,” an academician of Taiwan’s Academia Sinica, and a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He also held the title of honorary professor of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese University of Electronics Science and Technology in Chengdu.

Outside of his research and teaching, Bede was passionate about French wine, cooking, travel, and photography — and pursued these interests with the same quiet determination, curiosity, and enthusiasm. Research prize money was spent on cases of Bordeaux wine that were laid down for decades. Occasionally, he would uncork a bottle to accompany the elaborate Chinese New Year dishes he cooked. In later years, Bede focused on physical fitness, swimming regularly and taking up boxing when he was 89; he thoroughly enjoyed these classes.

Bede is survived by his wife of 67 years, Maria; his daughter Beatrice (Philip Lovett); his sister, Jane Jernow (Stanley Jernow); his brother, Hal Liu; and two grandchildren, Charles and Emily Lovett. He was predeceased by his sister, Lucy Liu, and his parents, Henry and Shan Liu.

Few people are as beloved and admired as Bede was — by his family, friends, students, professional colleagues, and casual acquaintances. He was ever humble, gracious, considerate, kind, supportive, loving, helpful, and caring. He will truly be missed. We take solace in knowing that “Bede touched so many lives and left a lasting legacy, not just at Princeton but for the world.”

A family-only funeral mass was held held on Friday, May 15. A memorial service is planned for a future date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution to The Bede Liu Fund for Excellence in Electrical Engineering. Checks written to “Princeton University” can be mailed to The Bede Liu Fund for Excellence in Electrical Engineering, Princeton University, P.O. Box 5357, Princeton, NJ 08543-5357. Gifts may also be made online, via Princeton’s Annual Giving portal: makeagift.princeton.edu/MainSite/MakeAGift. After clicking on the “in honor/memory of” box, please indicate in the “special instructions and comments” field that the gift is for the Bede Liu Fund for Excellence in Electrical Engineering and/or in memory of Bede Liu.
Arrangements are under the direction of The Mather-Hodge Funeral Home.

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Marilyn H. Freeberg

Marilyn H. Freeberg, 88, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, near her home in Princeton, NJ.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, Marilyn spent most of her life in Princeton, where she was a beloved member of the community. She worked as a substitute teacher at Littlebrook School and later as manager of the Village Silver Jewelry Shop in Princeton.

Marilyn was an active member of Community Without Walls and found joy in the friendships she cultivated throughout her life. She loved crafts of all kinds, especially sewing and quilting, and enjoyed playing golf, tennis, mahjong, bridge, and canasta. Marilyn was also a devoted supporter of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra and performances at McCarter Theatre Center. She especially cherished cooking, entertaining family and friends, and spending time with her many friends at the Windrows and throughout Princeton.

Marilyn was the daughter of the late Solomon and Esther Schleien; the devoted wife of the late Norman Edward Freeberg; and sister of the late Howard Schleien. She is survived by her daughters, Ellen Freeberg and Elizabeth Grossman and her husband, David Grossman; and by her cherished grandchildren, Daniel Grossman, Leah Grossman, and Emma Freeberg-Powell.

A Graveside Service was held on Sunday, May 17, 2026 at the Cedar Park Cemetery, Paramus.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Star of David Memorial Chapel of Princeton.