Professor Niels Birbaumer , Senior Research Fellow at the Wyss Center, has been awarded an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Psychology at the University of Vienna for his outstanding contributions to our understanding of brain function.
Professor Birbaumer is a psychologist and a neuroscientist. In addition to his position at the Wyss Center he is also Director of the Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology at the University of Tübingen. He is connected to the University of Vienna through multiple research collaborations.
Professor Birbaumer is responsible for groundbreaking research in neuroscience, psychology and behavioral medicine, including cortical reorganization in phantom pain. He is also known for innovative developments in brain-computer interaction including development of a brain-computer interface for communication in paralysis. Birbaumer has received numerous awards, including the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize (1995), the Albert Einstein World Award (2001) and the Helmholtz Medal (2010).
Professor Peter Smith, Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Goldsmiths College, University of London, and one of the world’s leading researchers on violence and violence prevention in schools was also awarded an honorary doctorate at the ceremony.
Heinz Engl, Rector of the University of Vienna, said: "The honorary doctorates illustrate the solidarity between the University of Vienna and these internationally top-class researchers and are a deserved distinction for both scientists”.
The honorary Doctorates were awarded by Heinz Engl and Barbara Schober, Dean of the Faculty of Psychology, at the University of Vienna.
