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Libet (Benjamin) Papers
MSS.2020.03
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Contributing Institution:
University of California, San Francisco Archives & Special Collections
Title: Benjamin Libet Papers
Creator:
Libet, Benjamin, 1916-2007
source:
Libet, Moreen
Identifier/Call Number: MSS.2020.03
Physical Description:
14 linear feet
(10 cartons and 1 oversize box)
Date (inclusive): 1957-2007
Abstract: Benjamin Libet was a Professor of Physiology at UCSF for nearly 50 years, and conducted research and experiments into the
physiological origins of "free will." The collection is comprised mainly of his personal papers - research materials and notes
on the brain and behavior, as well as preparatory notes and documentation for his book
Mind Time - The Temporal Factor in Consciousness, publshed in 2004.
Condition Description: In good condition. There are 3 audiotape recordings, 2 3.5 inch floppy disks, a CD, and VHS tape that require further processing
to assess their condition, but carriers are in good condition.
Language of Material: Collection materials are in English.
Benjamin Libet Papers, MSS 2020-03. Archives and Special Collections, University of California, San Francisco.
Collection is open for research.
Copyright has not been assigned to UCSF Archives and Special Collections. All requests for permission to publish or quote
from material must be submitted in writing to the Head of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is
given on behalf of UCSF Archives and Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include
or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Published books, many with Libet's own handwritten notes in the margins, have been removed from the collection.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was donated to the UCSF Archives and Special Collections by Moreen Libet in 2020.
No future additions are expected.
Collection is unprocessed, but was accessioned and minimally arranged by Erin Hurley in 2020.
Benjamin Libet was born on April 12, 1916 in Chicago to Ukranian Jewish immigrants. He studied at the University of Chicago,
where he received his doctoral degree in Physiology in 1939.
In 1949, Libet joined the faculty at UCSF, where he was a professor of physiology for nearly 50 years. In the 1970s, Libet's
research focused on neural activity and sensation threshholds, but he eventually became interested in consciousness and the
idea of free will. In the 1980s, he began conducting a series of experiments (later known as "the Libet experiments") into
the nature and physiological origins of free will and the links between the conscious and unconscious aspects of action and
awareness. He published the findings of his life's work in the 2004 book
Mind Time - The Temporal Factor in Consciousness.
Libet's theories are still much debated and were influential in the study of human consciousness and neurophysiology. Libet
died at the age of 91 in Davis, California on July 23, 2007.
Mostly paper files belonging to Benjamin Libet, known for his attempts to physically locate "free will" in the body and the
brain, including documentation of a scientific study measuring subjects' brain activity while they performed simple movements.
These include Libet's personal research materials into the workings of the human brain, comprised of scientific journals,
newspaper and magazine clippings, and photocopies of articles from scientific journals, mostly dating from the 1960s-1980s.
There are copious handwritten notes, as well as typed drafts of published articles and books. There are also color and black-and-white
slides, probably used over the course of Libet's nearly 50 year career as a professor of physiology at UCSF, as well as personal
effects such as passports, daily planners, awards, and personal correspondence. There are a number of color and black-and-white
photographs of Libet and his colleagues.
Collection is unprocessed, and has been minimally arranged by the archivist.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Neurophysiology
Free will and determinism
University of California San Francisco
Libet, Moreen