Dr. Bernhard Josef Mitterauer, B.Fel.
Professor of Forensic Neuropsychiatry
Salzburg, Austria
Newly inducted BWW Fellow (B.Fel.) Dr. Bernhard Mitterauer was born on
October 31, 1943, in the Austrian city of Salzburg. He enjoyed a
Catholic-Humanistic education within his family as well as at school. In 1969
he graduated with an M.D. from the University of Graz. Eight years later he
received his academic degree in Neuropsychiatry and Psychoanalysis. Between
1976 and 1984 Dr. Mitterauer studied Philosophy with Gotthard Günther, the
famous Philosopher of Cybernetics, in Hamburg. He developed a close friendship
and intensive scientific collaboration with Günther, whose philosophy has
influenced Dr. Mitterauer's work up to this day. In 1984 Dr. Mitterauer was
appointed a Professor of Neuropsychiatry at the University of Graz. He has
been serving as a Professor and Head of Forensic Neuropsychiatry at the
University of Salzburg since 1989. He has been married to Gertraud Laimböck
since 1970, and they have a daughter and a son.
Concurrently with his practical work as a Neuropsychiatrist, Dr. Mitterauer has been involved in interdisciplinary research in Biocybernetics since the beginning of his professional career. In the 1970's he published basic research studies on emotion, depression, narcissism and self-observation. Notably, in 1981 he earned theEiselberg Award for his already internationally acknowledged research on suicide. During the 1980's he published numerous studies dealing with a new "dialectic" psychopathology. His book Architectonics, Metaphysics of Feasibility deals with a future-oriented interpretation of technical activities, especially the development of robots. More recently, in the 1990's Dr. Mitterauer decisively advanced the methodology of the assessment of criminal offenders and also published numerous pertinent basic research studies.
Dr. Mitterauer has patented the most important findings of his biocybernetic brain research. To date a total of 11 international patents have been granted to him. He has also developed a new brain theory, which not only considers the neuronal systems but also accounts for the glial systems of the brain. Based upon this theory, which was detailed in 1998 in Biosystems, Dr. Mitterauer has shown that enormous consequences arise from our understanding of consciousness, psychiatric disorders, and finally, even for the development of "brain-similar" computers or robots. In addition, concerning his research on consciousness, his study entitled Some Principles for Conscious Robots, published in the Journal of Intelligent Systems in 2000, deserves mention. Based upon his new brain theory, Dr. Mitterauer has also developed a new type of computer hardware called clocked perception mechanism.
Having realized that molecular Biology is making fascinating discoveries, Dr. Mitterauer, in also pursuing this avenue, has postulated molecular biologically-oriented hypotheses concerning the etiology of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and manic-depressive as well as schizophrenic disorders. At the present time, Dr. Mitterauer is a member of various national and international scientific societies. He has also founded the Gotthard Günther Archives for the research and publication of the posthumous works of Günther at the University of Salzburg. His recreational activities include horseback riding, gardening and singing.
Dr. Mitterauer is the principal investigator and author of two papers currently featured in the BWW Society's Journal of Global Issues & Solutions, "An Action-Oriented Therapy of Depression" and "The Eternal Now: Toward an Interdisciplinary Theory of Schizophrenia."
© 2015 The BWW Society/The Institute for the Advancement of Positive Global Solutions