Gerd Sommerhoff
Encyclopedia
Gerd Sommerhoff OBE (born Germany
1905, died Cambridge
, England
2002-04-28), was a pioneer of theoretical neuroscience
and a noted humanist
.
A great-grandson of the German composer Robert Schumann
, he was living in England at the onset of the Second World War. As a foreign national, he spent at least two years in an internment camp in Canada
before returning to England where he took up a post teaching science at the Dragon School
in Oxford
. While there, he developed what was really an early form of CBT without computers, using boxes of numbered cards, containing questions, answers, tutorial material, or descriptions of experiments, on a variety of different subjects.
Sommerhoff later became a Research Fellow in Systems Theory
at University College, London. In parallel with this position, he taught technology at Sevenoaks School
. In 1984, he retired from teaching and moved to Trinity College, Cambridge
.
Some of his students were Tim Hunt
, John Paul Morrison
, and Richard Veryard
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
1905, died Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
2002-04-28), was a pioneer of theoretical neuroscience
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
and a noted humanist
Humanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
.
A great-grandson of the German composer Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
, he was living in England at the onset of the Second World War. As a foreign national, he spent at least two years in an internment camp in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
before returning to England where he took up a post teaching science at the Dragon School
Dragon School
The Dragon School is a British coeducational, preparatory school in the city of Oxford, founded in 1877 as the Oxford Preparatory School, or OPS. It is primarily known as a boarding school, although it also takes day pupils...
in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. While there, he developed what was really an early form of CBT without computers, using boxes of numbered cards, containing questions, answers, tutorial material, or descriptions of experiments, on a variety of different subjects.
Sommerhoff later became a Research Fellow in Systems Theory
Systems theory
Systems theory is the transdisciplinary study of systems in general, with the goal of elucidating principles that can be applied to all types of systems at all nesting levels in all fields of research...
at University College, London. In parallel with this position, he taught technology at Sevenoaks School
Sevenoaks School
Sevenoaks School is an English coeducational independent school located in the town of Sevenoaks, Kent. It is the oldest lay school in the United Kingdom, dating back to 1432. Almost 1,000 day pupils and boarders attend, ranging in age from 11 to 18 years. There are approximately equal numbers of...
. In 1984, he retired from teaching and moved to Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
.
Some of his students were Tim Hunt
Tim Hunt
Sir Richard Timothy "Tim" Hunt, FRS is an English biochemist.Hunt was awarded the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Paul Nurse and Leland H...
, John Paul Morrison
John Paul Morrison
John Paul Morrison is a British-born Canadian computer programmer, and the inventor of flow-based programming . He is the author of the books Flow-Based Programming: A New Approach to Application Development and Flow-Based Programming, 2nd Edition: A New Approach to Application Development...
, and Richard Veryard
Richard Veryard
Richard Veryard is a British computer scientist, author and business consultant, known for his work on Service Oriented Architecture and the Service-Based Business.-Biography:...
.
Works
- 1950. Analytical Biology
- 1974. Logic of the Living Brain
- 1990. Life, Brain and Consciousness
- 1994. An Account of consciousness in physical and functional terms: A target for research in the neurosciences. Integrative Physiology and Behavioral Science. With Karl F. MacDorman.
- 1996. In and Out of Consciousness. The intimate history of a search for certainties.
- 2001. Understanding Consciousness.