Who was Otto Loewi?
Otto Loewi was born on June 3, 1873, in Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany, the son of Jacob Loewi, a merchant, and Anna Willsttter. After having attended the humanistic Gymnasium (grammar school) in his native town, he entered in 1891 the Universities of Munich and Strassburg (at that time part of Germany) as a medical student. Apart from his attendance at the inspiring anatomy courses of Gustav Schwalbe, however, he seldom went to the medical lectures, being more inclined towards those held at the philosophical faculty. Only in the summer of 1893 did he seriously prepare for his Physicum, the first medical examination, which he just managed to pass. It was not until the autumn of 1894 that his indifference to medicine suddenly gave way to almost enthusiastic interest. In 1896 he took his doctor’s degree at Strassburg University, his thesis dealing with a subject suggested by Professor Oswald Schmiedeberg, the famous Father of Pharmacology. Also responsible for his medical education were: Ber
