C. U. Ariëns Kappers

Who was C. U. Ariëns Kappers?

Cornelius Ubbo Ariëns Kappers was a Dutch neurologist.

In 1909 he became the first director of the Nederlands Instituut voor Hersenonderzoek, a position he maintained until his death in 1946. During his tenure, the institute became an internationally renowned center known for its work involving comparative neuroanatomy.

Two scientific awards are named in his honour; The Ariëns Kappers Medal from the Royal Nederlands Academy of Sciences for landmark contributions in the field of neuroscience, and the C.U. Ariëns Kappers Prize, for the best neurological publication by a PhD student.

As a student he was influenced by the work of German neurologist Ludwig Edinger and Dutch anatomist Louis Bolk. During his career he amassed a large collection of brains; 450 brains in their entirety from over 300 species. This collection also includes 30,000 brain preparations.