Walter Rudolf Hess

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For the German Nazi party official, see Rudolf Hess.
Walter Rudolf Hess
ETH Zürich

Walter Rudolf Hess (17 March 1881 – 12 August 1973)

Egas Moniz
.

Life

Hess was born in Frauenfeld as the second of three children to Clemens Hess and Gertrud Hess (née Fischer). His father encouraged him to pursue a scientific career and with him he conducted experiments in his physics laboratory. He started to study medicine in Lausanne in 1899 and then in Berlin, Kiel and Zürich. He received his medical degree from the University of Zurich in 1906 and trained as surgeon in Münsterlingen (in the same canton as his birthplace Frauenfeld) under Conrad Brunner (1859–1927). He developed a viscosimeter to measure blood viscosity and published his dissertation in 1906 titled Zum Thema Viskosität des Blutes und Herzarbeit.[3] In 1907, he went to the University of Zurich to study under Otto Haab to be trained as an ophthalmologist and opened his own private practice in Rapperswil SG. In these years, he developed the "Hess screen", married Louise Sandmeier and in 1910 their daughter Gertrud Hess was born. In 1913 his son Rudolf Max Hess was born.[4]

In 1912, he left his lucrative private practice as an ophthalmologist and went into research under Justus Gaule (1849–1939),

First World War he spent a year at the Physiological Institute of the University of Bonn under Max Verworn. In 1916, Gaule retired and Hess first became interim director of the Department of the Physiological Institute at the University of Zurich. Hess served as full professor and director of the institute from 1917 until his retirement in 1951.[4]

In the 1930s, he began

animal experimentation.[4]

Hess retired in 1951 but continued working at the university in an office. In 1967, he moved to

Locarno, Switzerland.[4]
His widow died in 1987.

Research

Hess used brain stimulation techniques developed in the late 1920s. Using

electrodes, Hess stimulated the brain at well-defined anatomical regions. This allowed him to map regions of the brain to specific physiological responses. He developed a special technique he called "interrupted direct-current (DC) stimulation" which used stimuli of long duration (typically 12.5 or 25 ms) with ramp-like upward and downward slopes. Also, the stimuli were rather weak (around 0.5–1.5 V) and of low frequency (2–12 Hz, usually 8 Hz) and he used very fine electrodes with a diameter of 0.25 mm.[4]

By stimulating the

micturition (urination) and defecation. Stimulation of the posterior part led to extreme excitement and defense-like behavior.[4]

Hess also found that he could induce sleep in cats – a finding that was highly controversial at the time but later confirmed by other researchers, including his son Rudolf Max Hess.[4]

Honours

Notes and references

  1. ^ Koelbing, Huldrych M.F. "Walter Rudolf Hess". Historiches Lexikon der Schweiz [Historical Dictionary of Switzerland] (in German).
  2. ^ His Nobel Lecture on "The Central Control of the Activity of Internal Organs"
  3. ^ Hess WR. (1906). "Zum Thema Viskosität des Blutes und Herzarbeit. Dissertation". Vierteljahresschr Natur forsch Ges Zürich. 51: 236–51.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Christian W. Hess. "W.R. Hess Biography" (PDF). Schweizer Archiv für Neurologie und Psychiatrie. 159 (4): 255–261.
  5. ISBN 9780525954835
    .

External links
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