Hans Berger facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hans Berger
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| Born | 21 May 1873 |
| Died | 1 June 1941 (aged 68) Jena, Germany
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| Alma mater | University of Jena |
| Known for | Electroencephalograms; discovery of the alpha wave rhythm |
| Spouse(s) | Baroness Ursula von Bülow |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Psychiatry |
Hans Berger (born May 21, 1873 – died June 1, 1941) was a German doctor who studied the brain. He is famous for inventing the electroencephalography (EEG) machine in 1924. This machine records the electrical signals that your brain makes, which are often called brainwaves. He also discovered a special type of brainwave called the alpha wave. Sometimes, alpha waves are even called "Berger waves" because of him!
Contents
Hans Berger's Early Life and Discoveries
Hans Berger was born in a place called Neuses, which is now part of Coburg, Germany.
A Life-Changing Moment
After finishing school in 1892, Berger started studying math at the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena. He wanted to become an astronomer, someone who studies stars and space. But after just one semester, he decided to join the cavalry for a year of military service.
During a training exercise, something amazing happened. His horse suddenly stopped, and he fell right in front of a horse-drawn cannon! Luckily, the driver stopped the horses just in time, and Berger was safe, though very shaken. At the same time, many kilometers away, his sister had a strong feeling that he was in danger. She quickly told their father to send a telegram to check on him.
This event made a huge impression on Berger. Years later, he wrote that it felt like his thoughts had traveled to his sister when he was in danger. This made him very curious about how the mind works.
The Search for Brain Energy
After his military service, Berger returned to Jena to study medicine. He was determined to find out how the brain creates "psychic energy," which is what he called the way our minds send and receive signals. His main goal was to find a link between what the brain does physically and what we experience in our minds.
Becoming a Brain Doctor
Berger earned his medical degree in 1897. He then started working at the Jena clinic, where he studied psychiatry (mental health) and neurology (the nervous system). He worked his way up, becoming a senior university lecturer and then a chief physician. He also worked with other famous scientists who studied how different parts of the brain have different jobs. In 1911, he married his assistant, Baroness Ursula von Bülow. He also served as a psychiatrist during World War I.
Inventing the EEG Machine
In 1924, Hans Berger made his most important discovery: he successfully recorded the first human electroencephalogram (EEG). He even came up with the name "EEG" for this new method.
Doubts and Disbelief
Even though he had made this amazing discovery, Berger was full of doubt. It took him five years to finally publish his findings in 1929. In his paper, he showed how to record the electrical activity of the human brain from the outside of the head.
At first, many doctors and scientists in Germany didn't believe him. They even made fun of his work! An American scientist named William Grey Walter visited Berger's lab in 1935. He noticed that other doctors thought Berger was a bit strange. But Walter also saw that Berger was a kind and humble person who wasn't bothered by the lack of recognition.
Global Recognition for Brainwaves
Finally, in 1934, two British scientists, Edgar Douglas Adrian and B. H. C. Matthews, confirmed Berger's basic observations. After that, the importance of his EEG discoveries was finally recognized around the world in 1937. By 1938, the EEG machine was widely accepted and used by top researchers. It quickly became a practical tool for diagnosing brain conditions in places like the United States, England, and France.
Later Life and Challenges
In 1938, when he was 65, Berger retired. His relationship with the Nazi government was difficult. Some reports say the Nazis forced him to retire and stopped him from working on the EEG. However, more recent research suggests that he was not forced to retire and even helped choose his replacement. Records also show that he served on a court related to genetic health and had some anti-Semitic comments in his diaries. While he didn't join the Nazi party, he was a supporting member of the SS, possibly to protect himself.
After a long period of sadness and suffering from a skin infection, Hans Berger passed away on June 1, 1941.
Hans Berger's Brain Research
Berger had many interests in brain science. He studied how blood flows in the brain, how the mind and body connect, and even brain temperature.
Early Brain Experiments
One of his early experiments involved a man who had a small opening in his skull, which left part of his brain exposed. The man allowed Berger to put a special rubber tube filled with liquid through this opening. The tube had a pen at the end that would record pressure changes on a spinning drum. Berger noticed that the pen would draw waves that changed when the man thought about different things or felt different emotions.
The First Human EEG
This work led to his most important contribution. Another doctor, Richard Caton, had already recorded electrical signals from the brains of animals. Berger's patient gave him the chance to try Caton's method on a human. In 1924, Berger made the very first EEG recording of human brain activity and called it Elektrenkephalogramm.
Using the EEG, Berger was also the first to describe the different types of brainwaves found in healthy and unhealthy brains. He discovered the alpha wave rhythm (which is a specific speed of brainwave) and noticed that these waves disappear when a person opens their eyes. He also studied how brain diseases like epilepsy changed the EEG patterns.
How the EEG Worked
To record brain activity, Berger first used silver wires placed on the front and back of the head. Later, he used silver foil electrodes held in place with a rubber bandage. He used special devices called galvanometers to record tiny electrical voltages, as small as one ten-thousandth of a volt. The recordings, which lasted a few seconds, were then photographed.
Today, the EEG is a very useful tool in medicine. Doctors use it to diagnose many conditions and diseases. They look at the patterns of brainwaves, called evoked potentials (EPs) or event-related potentials (ERPs), to see how the brain reacts to different things. If the brainwave patterns are not normal, it can show that there's a problem with how the brain is processing information. These studies have also helped develop brain mapping techniques.
Hans-Berger-Preis Renamed
There used to be a special award named after Hans Berger, given to people who did great work in brain science. However, in 2021, the German Society of Clinical Neurophysiology decided to rename all its awards. This was partly because of Hans Berger's, and other namesakes', connections to the Nazi regime. So, the "Hans-Berger-Preis" is now called the "Medal of Merit for Lifetime Achievement in Neurophysiology and Functional Imaging."
See also
- Sleep medicine
