Care to mourn the passing of Oliver Sacks?
Asked by
janbb (
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August 30th, 2015
He was a great neurologist and humanist thinker who expanded the knowledge of how our brains work. For those of you who don’t know him, he was the doctor portrayed by Robin Williams in Awakenings. He spent his life studying and helping people with abnormal brain functioning due to trauma or illness. One of his famous early books is The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
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16 Answers
Awww… Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood.
Those days are long gone. He showed and documented what kids learned by playing with the dangerous stuff (if they survived.)
Science!
We need more scientists like him who think outside of the box.
Yes, a bright and brilliant mind with an eventful life behind him. A life well spent.
Let’s mourn his sad death and celebrate his wonderful life.
Brilliant scientist, engaging speaker, and a truly great man. He will be missed.
@Pachy yes, let’s celebrate the life and the graciousness with which he faced his death.
I loved his books. It’s been many years, I’ll have to pick them up again. My favorite was Island of the Colorblind, with fascinating botany lessons on cycads on top of the medical story.
Also, even as a straight guy, I’d have to say that as a young man Oliver Sacks was hot.
I remember reading that book but forgot all about the Robin Williams portrayal. RIP Mr. Sacks, a rare bird indeed.
Awakenings is beautiful, I’d never seen it until shortly after Robin Williams died. As an Oliver Sacks fan, I don’t know how I missed it.
Wow, what an amazing man. To be honest, I only know him from the “Awakenings” movie. But what I learned of him from that was incredible.
I did not see the movie or read his books, but knew him from his occasional NPR appearances. He always had a new angle for looking at how our brains work. The last time I heard him, he spoke about coming out as being gay. It was the first time I heard him speak about his personal life and made for some interesting listening.
@LostInParadise He’s written some wonderful articles in The New York Times in the last six months about his personal life and his illness. Worth looking up if you have the inclination.
He has always been my first pic for that question “who would you most want to have as a dinner guest?” I’m sad about this.
He was an inspiration in the way he lived and the way he faced his death. I love the example he set for doctors: to listen, care, really pay attention, want to understand what the situation was instead of coming in with a pre-figured diagnosis. How lucky we were to have him in our world.
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