Auguste Forel

Auguste Forel (1848–1931) was a Swiss psychiatrist, neuroanatomist and naturalist. As director of the Burghölzli asylum in Zurich from 1879 to 1898 he reformed the care of patients, used hypnosis in treatment and contributed to the neuron theory of the nervous system. Throughout his life he also studied ants, publishing major works on their classification and behavior. He campaigned against alcohol, for women's rights and for sex education, but also advocated eugenic measures now rejected. His Sexual Question, published in 1905, was widely translated, and his portrait appeared on the Swiss thousand-franc note.