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Herbert Spencer GasserAmerican psychologist, Nobel Prize laureate in physiology or medicine (together with J. Erlanger), 1944
Date of Birth: 05.07.1888
Country:  USA |
Content:
Biography of Herbert Spencer Gasser
Herbert Spencer Gasser was an American psychologist and the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1944. He was born into the family of Austrian immigrant and physician, German Gasser.
Education and Early Career
After completing his schooling, Gasser enrolled at the University of Wisconsin. He earned his bachelor's degree in 1910 and his master's degree in 1911. During his time at the university, he studied psychology under the guidance of Dr. Joseph Erlanger, with whom he would later collaborate extensively.
Following his graduation, Gasser started working at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he obtained his doctoral degree in 1915. In 1923, he was granted a scholarship to study in Europe, where he worked under the supervision of professors A. V. Hill, W. Straub, L. Lapicque, and Sir Henry Dale.
Contributions and Achievements
In 1931, Gasser became a professor of psychology and the head of the Department of Medicine at Cornell University in New York. From 1935 to 1953, he served as the director of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research and later became an honorary member of the institute.
Even during his time at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Gasser primarily focused on blood coagulation problems. However, his major work, conducted in collaboration with Professor Erlanger, revolved around the electrophysiology of nerve endings. His early scientific research explored the processes occurring in the diaphragmatic nerve. With the advent of the oscilloscope, it became possible to visually demonstrate the differences in the sensitivity of nerve endings, particularly the direct proportionality between the speed of impulse propagation and the diameter of the nerve fiber. These experiments significantly advanced scientists' understanding of the mechanisms underlying pain and laid the foundation for a new field, neurophysiology.
In 1937, Gasser co-authored the book "Electrical Signs of Nervous Activity" (Electrical Signs of Nervous Activity), which further contributed to his body of work. Additionally, he published numerous articles, particularly in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, with which he actively collaborated.
In 1944, Gasser and Erlanger were awarded the Nobel Prize "for discoveries relating to the highly differentiated functions of individual nerve fibers." He received honorary doctorates from the University of Pennsylvania, University of Rochester, University of Wisconsin, Columbia University, University of Oxford, Harvard University, University of Paris (St. Louis), and Johns Hopkins University. Gasser was a member of the National Academy of Sciences in the United States and the American Medical Association. In 1954, he was awarded the Copley Medal by the American Physiological Society.
Some of Gasser's notable works include "A Study of the Mechanism by Which Muscular Exercise Produces Acceleration of the Heart" published in the American Journal of Physiology (1914) and "The Classification of Nerve Fibres" published in the Ohio Journal of Science (1941).
