Born: 16 October 1708
Died: 12 December 1777
Nationality: Swiss
Albrecht von Haller was a Swiss Anatomist, Physiologist, Naturalist and Poet. A pupil of Herman Boerhaave, he is often referred to as "the father of modern physiology."
He studied the form and function of one organ after the other, launching anatomy as an experimental science, and also enforcing dynamic rules to the study of physiology.
Haller analysed the irritability of muscle and the sensibility of nerves, studying circulation time and the automatic action of the heart. He gave the first to give detailed explanation of respiration.
His publication “Elements of Physiology” proved to be one of the influential works on the subject. Haller consistently broadened the field of anatomy, relating it to physiology by experimentation, and implemented dynamic rules to complex physiological problems.
The approach of Albrecht von Haller was precise, analytical and objective. He was the first person to discover that only nerves produce sensation and only those parts of the body connected to the nervous system can undergo a sensation. Probably his most notable contribution was the formulation of the method of physiological research.