Uner Tan
Encyclopedia
Uner Tan (born May 1, 1937) is a Turkish neuroscientist
and evolutionary biologist. He is best known for his discovery and study of the human quadrupedal condition he named the Uner Tan syndrome
. He taught at Cukurova University
until his retirement in 2004 and had previously taught at several other institutions.
, Turkey
. He graduated from secondary school in Corum
and started college at Ege University
, at the Faculty of Medicine, in 1956. He continued at Göttingen University and graduated from there and the Max-Planck Institute in 1966. He returned to Turkey at 1969 and worked at Hacettepe University
in Ankara
, and Ataturk University in Erzurum
, Black Sea Technical University in Trabzon
and Cukurova University in Adana
. He retired in 2004.
, a condition in which subjects walk quadrupedal gait and primitive cognition including speech and intelligence with no conscious experience. He proposed the syndrome after his discovery of the Ulas family
of rural southern Turkey, five of whom have these symptoms. He also put forward the theory of "backward evolution
" as a reflection of the qaudrupedal gait, which was used by our ancestors before Homo erectus
. Since his study of the Ulas family, Tan has studied the Uner Tan syndrome in several other families.
Neuroscientist
A neuroscientist is an individual who studies the scientific field of neuroscience or any of its related sub-fields...
and evolutionary biologist. He is best known for his discovery and study of the human quadrupedal condition he named the Uner Tan syndrome
Uner Tan syndrome
Uner Tan syndrome, Unertan syndrome or UTS is a syndrome proposed by the Turkish evolutionary biologist Uner Tan. Persons affected by this syndrome walk with a quadrupedal locomotion and are afflicted with primitive speech and severe mental retardation. Tan postulated that this is an example of...
. He taught at Cukurova University
Çukurova University
Çukurova University has eleven faculties, three colleges, seven vocational colleges, three institutes and twenty six research and application centers...
until his retirement in 2004 and had previously taught at several other institutions.
Biography
Tan was born in ÜnyeÜnye
Ünye is a large town and district of Ordu Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey, 76 km west of the city of Ordu. In 2009 it had 74,806 inhabitants.-Geography:Ünye has a little port, in a bay on one of the flatter areas of the Black Sea coast...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. He graduated from secondary school in Corum
Corum
Corum Jhaelen Irsei is the name of a fictional fantasy hero in a series of two trilogies written by author Michael Moorcock.- Plot summary :...
and started college at Ege University
Ege University
Ege University is a public university in İzmir, Turkey. It was founded in 1955 with the Faculties of Medicine and Faculty of Agriculture...
, at the Faculty of Medicine, in 1956. He continued at Göttingen University and graduated from there and the Max-Planck Institute in 1966. He returned to Turkey at 1969 and worked at Hacettepe University
Hacettepe University
Hacettepe University is a major state university in Ankara, Turkey.The University has two main campuses. The first is located in the old town of Ankara and hosts the Medical Centre, and the second is the Beytepe Campus, which is 13 km from the city centre...
in Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
, and Ataturk University in Erzurum
Erzurum
Erzurum is a city in Turkey. It is the largest city, the capital of Erzurum Province. The city is situated 1757 meters above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 361,235 in the 2000 census. .Erzurum, known as "The Rock" in NATO code, served as NATO's southeastern-most air force post during the...
, Black Sea Technical University in Trabzon
Trabzon
Trabzon is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast...
and Cukurova University in Adana
Adana
Adana is a city in southern Turkey and a major agricultural and commercial center. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, 30 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean, in south-central Anatolia...
. He retired in 2004.
Uner Tan syndrome
Tan is best known for his proposal of the Uner Tan syndromeUner Tan syndrome
Uner Tan syndrome, Unertan syndrome or UTS is a syndrome proposed by the Turkish evolutionary biologist Uner Tan. Persons affected by this syndrome walk with a quadrupedal locomotion and are afflicted with primitive speech and severe mental retardation. Tan postulated that this is an example of...
, a condition in which subjects walk quadrupedal gait and primitive cognition including speech and intelligence with no conscious experience. He proposed the syndrome after his discovery of the Ulas family
Ulas family
The Ulas family is a large Kurdish family of 19 from rural southern Turkey, five of whom walk on all fours with their feet and the palms of their hands in what is called a "bear crawl". Their quadrupedal gait has never been reported in anatomically intact adult humans. The gait is different from...
of rural southern Turkey, five of whom have these symptoms. He also put forward the theory of "backward evolution
Atavism
Atavism is the tendency to revert to ancestral type. In biology, an atavism is an evolutionary throwback, such as traits reappearing which had disappeared generations before. Atavisms can occur in several ways...
" as a reflection of the qaudrupedal gait, which was used by our ancestors before Homo erectus
Homo erectus
Homo erectus is an extinct species of hominid that lived from the end of the Pliocene epoch to the later Pleistocene, about . The species originated in Africa and spread as far as India, China and Java. There is still disagreement on the subject of the classification, ancestry, and progeny of H...
. Since his study of the Ulas family, Tan has studied the Uner Tan syndrome in several other families.