Deep within the Cambridge Biomedical Campus sits a hub of scientific innovation. This is the E.D. Adrian Building. But who was E.D. Adrian and why does this building bear his name?
Edgar Douglas Adrian was a brilliant British scientist. He was born in London in 1889. Adrian’s father was a legal advisor to the British Local Government Board.
Adrian studied physiology at Trinity College Cambridge. He excelled earning first-class honors in five subjects. In 1913, he became a Fellow of Trinity College. His early research focused on the all-or-none principle in nerve function.
During World War I, Adrian worked with patients suffering from nerve injuries. After the war, he returned to Cambridge. He took over Keith Lucas’s laboratory. Adrian began groundbreaking work on nerve impulses.
He used innovative technology. This included the cathode ray tube and thermionic valves. These tools amplified electrical impulses. Adrian amplified them by 5000 times.
Adrian successfully isolated a single end organ in a frog muscle. He also isolated the related nerve fiber. He discovered that stimulating the end organ created regular impulses in the nerve fiber. The frequency of the impulses varied.
This allowed him to record electrical discharges in single nerve fibers. He explored responses to touch pressure and pain. By 1928, Adrian concluded that constant stimulus excites the end organ. This excitation decreases over time. Sensory impulses travel along the nerve. These impulses are initially frequent. Their frequency gradually declines. The sensation in the brain diminishes accordingly.
Adrian’s research provided a new understanding of nervous behavior. He demonstrated that the timing of impulses determines their effect.
Later Adrian studied pain stimuli. His findings supported Sir Henry Head’s clinical observations. Adrian suggested that pain impulses might not reach beyond the optic thalamus. He also showed how the brain devotes different areas to different senses. This depends on the animal’s needs. For example humans have large sensory areas for the face and hands. Pigs have large areas for the snout.
Adrian also investigated the sense of smell. He studied the electrical activity of the brain. He examined variations in brain waves. His work advanced the study of epilepsy and other brain disorders.
In 1932, Adrian received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He shared it with Sir Charles Sherrington. The prize recognized his work on neuron function.
Adrian held prestigious positions throughout his career. He was Foulerton Professor of the Royal Society. Later he became Professor of Physiology at Cambridge. He was also Master of Trinity College.
Outside of his scientific pursuits Adrian enjoyed an active life. He was an expert fencer and enthusiastic mountaineer. He also had great interest in the arts. To the citizens of Cambridge he was known as the small figure on a bicycle threading his way at high speed through the streets of the city.
The E.D. Adrian Building stands as a testament to his legacy. It is a place where researchers continue to unravel the mysteries of the brain. The building houses the Cambridge Centre for Brain Repair. Here scientists work to develop new treatments for neurological disorders.
So as you stand before the E.D. Adrian Building remember the man behind the name. Remember his dedication to understanding the nervous system. This building embodies his spirit of scientific inquiry. It is a place where discoveries continue to be made pushing the boundaries of knowledge.