In 1884-1897, the remarkable Russian physiologist V. M. Bcchtercv pub- 

 lished his studies of the characteristics of the age-associated morphology and 

 physiology of the central nervous system. He was particularly interested in 

 the very earliest stages of ontogenesis. 



During the same period, A. N. Alelekov (1892) investigated senile changes 

 in the functions of the nervous system. In his dissertation, he included a very 

 detailed review of the literature (starting with 1537), but unfortunately without 

 consideration of the contemporary need for providing bibliographic material. 



This group of studies is evidence of the appearance of a new and important 

 orientation of research, along the lines of the physiology of aging of the nervous 

 system, which found its culminating expression in the works of I. P. Pavlov's 

 school. 



To this same period belong the classic studies of I. P. Pavlov (1895-96), 

 who studied the causes of death of dogs that had been subjected to bilateral 

 vagotomy. Pavlov succeeded in showing that vagotomized dogs were still 

 capable of living. These were Pavlov's first papers on the significance of the 

 nervous system as regards the ability of higher animals to survive. The flower- 

 ing of the work of Pavlov and his pupils on senile changes in the nervous system 

 (and also on the ontogenetic development of the cerebral cortex) came in later 

 years. 



An important place in scientific investigations must be given to the Russian 

 teacher, anatomist, and physician P. F. Lesgaft, who concerned himself with the 

 problems of the morphology, morphophysiology, and ontogenesis of aging in 

 human higher nervous activity. He based his remarkable system of physical 

 education, as well as his system of general education of the child, on his deep 

 knowledge of his functional anatomy and psychology. 



Lesgaft gives the following excellent formulation (1884) of the tasks and 

 methods of family education (and education in general): "The whole secret of 

 family education consists in giving the child an opportunity to develop himself, 

 to do everything himself; the adults must not fuss with him and should not do 

 anything for his personal comfort and pleasure but should always, from the 

 first day of his life, treat the child as a human being, with full recognition of his 

 personality and of the fact that this personality must remain inviolate." 



The problems of education, conceived of so deeply and humanely, require 

 a broad knowledge of the successive phases of the ontogenetic development of 

 the child's structure and function and of the changes in the level of his mental 

 activities. In his "Fundamentals of Theoretical Anatomy" (1905), Lesgaft 

 gave a good deal of space to an investigation and evaluation of the morphology 

 of aging in the child and adult. He made a particularly thorough study of the 

 age-associated development of cardiovascular and muscle systems of man. 

 In "Family Education of Man and its Significance" (1884-1910), Lesgaft made 

 a deep and original analysis of the progressive development of higher nervous 

 activity and analyzers in the child, especially in very young infants. 



According to Lesgaft, "we find that according to the gradual and succes- 

 sive course of development of mental abilities in the normal child, his develop- 

 ment can be broken down into the following periods. 



