Frithiof Holmgren

Who was Frithiof Holmgren?

Alarik Frithiof Holmgren was a Swedish physiologist and professor at Upsala University and a vocal opponent of vivisection, and particularly the use of curare to immobilize subjects so they appeared peaceful while feeling great pain. He studied vision and following a railway crash at Lagerlunda, he advocated the need to preclude people with defective color vision from railway employment. This established the now standard practice of excluded color blind individuals from employment in certain sectors.

Holmgren was a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences from 1880. He was married to the suffragist Ann-Margret Holmgren.