Step into the world of Auguste Forel here in Lyon. This building on Rue Raphael Dubois bears his name. But who was Auguste Forel? What makes him so important?
Auguste-Henri Forel was born in Switzerland in 1848. He died in 1931 at the age of 82. Forel was a man of many talents. He was a neuroanatomist. He was a psychiatrist. And he was an entomologist, someone who studies insects. His work spanned the human brain and ant colonies.
Forel studied medicine at the University of Zurich. Later he studied neuroanatomy in Vienna. In 1879, he became the director of the Burghölzli Asylum in Zurich. He also became a professor of psychiatry.
Auguste Forel made significant contributions to brain anatomy. In 1877, he described previously unknown brain structures in the tegmental region. He also wrote about neuron theory in 1887. He described functional units within the brain.
Forel realized neurons were basic to the nervous system. He found communication at neuromuscular junctions happened by contact. Fibers didn’t need to join. This became Forel’s Contact Theory.
The word “neuron” came from Wilhelm von Waldeyer. He reviewed Forel’s work. Waldeyer synthesized ideas and published them. Forel felt bitter about Waldeyer’s fame. This may have lessened his interest in neuroanatomy.
In 1877, Forel first described the zona incerta area in the brain. He named it that because he wasn’t sure what to say about it.
Auguste Forel also studied ants. His work “Les Fourmis de la Suisse” earned him the Schafli prize. Charles Darwin commended this work. The Paris Academy of Science also honored him. In 1886, he studied ant communication. Forel removed antennae from ants. He observed their behavior. Ants without antennae were no longer aggressive. This showed ants use antennae to distinguish friend from foe.
Forel’s interests extended beyond science. He founded an institute for alcoholism treatment in Zurich in 1889. He advocated for social reforms. These reforms aimed to prevent mental illness. He addressed issues like syphilis and alcoholism.
In 1920, Auguste Forel became a member of the Baháʼí Faith. He abandoned his racist and socialist views. He called it the true religion of human social good.
From 1978 until 2000, Forel’s image appeared on the 1000 Swiss franc banknote. A traveling exhibition displayed Forel’s life work in 1986 in Zurich.
Auguste Forel made lasting contributions. He impacted the fields of neuroscience, psychiatry, and myrmecology. He left behind a legacy. He was a scientist and a social reformer.