?János Szentágothai?s significance in Hungarian science as well as the role he played in public life can be compared with few others, said Pálinkás. ?As an outstanding researcher, he stood shoulder to shoulder with Nobel Prize winners,? he added.
?He established several schools of neuroscience, the results of which can still be felt today,? Pálinkás said.
He cited the example of the researchers Péter Somogyi, Tamás Freund and György Buzsáki, who last year became the first Hungarians to win the 1 million euro Brain Prize.
Pálinkás said Szentágothai did much during ?difficult times from the point of view of political influence? to preserve the Hungarian Academy of Sciences? place as an extraordinary institution with the highest standing.
Szentágothai was a member of Hungary?s first democratically elected parliament between 1990 and 1994, a time when difficult questions were on the agenda and the country was struggling with a massive amount of debt.
Pálinkás said former prime minister József Antall asked for Szentágothai?s opinions on many questions.
?It is important for the country that the views of scientists benefit political life too,? he added.
Pálinkás said a number of events were planned to mark the centennial across the country, such as in Pécs, where Szentágothai was a university professor. The main event will be a memorial conference at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences on Szentágothai?s birthday, October 31, he added.
József Hámori, who chairs the Hungarian UNESCO Committee, said the Szentágothai year was also an acknowledgment of Hungarian research in neuroscience.
?Everybody is a pupil of Szentágothai in some way,? Hámori said. ?All of us who work here and who strive to continue research in the neurosciences for the good of Hungary were brought up under his wings,? he added.
UNESCO calls Szentagothai (1912-1994) ?one of the pioneers of 20th century brain research?.
?In particular he discovered and described the micro-anatomical structure and physiological functioning of the cortical modul. Students all over the world studied human anatomy from his textbooks and atlases.?
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
