Ivan Pavlov, Russian physiologist and experimental psychologist, is usually associated with his most famous work, conditioned reflexes. Using dogs, he experimented on nervous stimulation of gastric secretions and discovered the conditioned reflex: ring the bell and the dog salivates in anticipation of the food. He believed that his findings could explain the behavior of psychotic people; for example, those who withdrew from the world may associate all stimuli as a possible threat. These conclusions influenced the behaviorist theory of psychology. His research on the physiology of the digestive glands led to a Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine in 1904. Pavlov’s credentials also included a professorship at the Military Medical Academy and director of the physiology department at the Institute for Experimental Medicine in Leningrad. He was born on this date in 1849 and worked in his lab until his death at the age of 87.

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