Yu-Tao Loo (1906–1985) (Fig. 1) was one of the Chinese neuropsychologists who acted as a pioneer of structure and functions studies of human cerebral cortex (Qian 2013) in China. Loo made great contributions in laying a solid foundation for neuroanatomy and physiological psychology in China. Meanwhile, his academic research broadened the horizons of this field. Besides, as a scientist, he wrote a series of popular-science articles and books to disseminate scientific knowledge. He was also a firm patriot and keen on political construction in China.

Figure 1
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Dr. Yu-tao Loo (from left) with his colleague Dr. Ho-nien Chu (from right) in 1933

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Yu-Tao Loo was born on January 9th, 1906 in Yinxian County, Zhejiang Province. In 1921, Loo got accepted into in the Psychology Department of Southeast University (i.e., National Central University), and transferred to Biology Department four years later. After receiving his Bachelor of Science in 1926, Loo won a scholarship sponsored by the Zhejiang Provincial Government to study abroad at the Department of Anatomy of University of Chicago.

Fortunately, Charles Judson Herrick, an illustrious anatomist who has made exceptional contribution to psychobiology, became Loo’s supervisor. In 1930, under Herrick’s guidance, Loo completed his doctoral dissertation The Forebrain of the Opossum, Didelphis Virginiana. In his study, Loo presented the gross and minute anatomy of the opossum endbrain. The final sentence in his doctoral dissertation revealed the real value and significance of the minute anatomy of the internal structure. That is, “It is hoped that this examination of its internal structure will facilitate the further prosecution of such studies. The generalized character of this brain and the great development of some parts which are reduced or rudimentary in higher mammals also aid in clarifying the general principles of forebrain morphology (Loo 1931)”. The scholars of later generations gave a wonderful comment that his article comprehensively described the anatomy of gross neuroanatomical structures in marsupials (Karlen and Krubitzer 2007). Moreover, Web of Science shows that Loo’s dissertation has been cited for 247 times so far. Even contemporary scientists are develo** their scientific researches based on Loo’s exceptional results on brain areas in didelphis, such as Thalamic nuclei (Olokowicz et al. 2008) and claustrum (Hinova-Palova et al. 2008; Mathur 2014). Under Herrick’s recommendation, Loo’s doctoral thesis was published in The Journal of Comparative Neurology. Accompanying with this paper, he received a $20,000 grant from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

In 1930, Loo was recruited as an adjunct professor by the Medical College of National Central University as soon as he returned to China. His responsibilities included giving lectures on experimental anatomy to the university students. Between 1931 and 1939, he worked as a researcher in Psychology Institute of Academia Sinica and took charge of the neuroanatomy laboratory. In 1937, Loo became the main copywriter of The Chinese Journal of Psychology where he published a paper The Functions of the Cerebral Cortex, An Interpretation that was the only article about physiological psychology in four issues of this journal.

During the Anti-Japanese War, Loo was entrusted by Ren Hong-jun to hold the post as acting director-general of Chinese Science Society, develo** social activities in the Rear Areas. In the spring of 1941, Loo moved to Guiyang where he worked as a professor at ** stone to psychology, which made him study neuroanatomy. As a patriotic personage, Loo’s rich accumulation had broken forth vastly for 20 years, which contributed tremendously to the development of neuropsychology in China.