Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais (1904-1984) was a physicist and mechanical engineer who worked at the Sorbonne with the Nobel Laureate Pierre Joliot-Curie in nuclear research. He was the first European to earn a black belt in Judo. Earlier in his life Feldenkrais had sustained knee injuries for which surgical intervention had not been successful. In the late 1940s, utilizing principles of physics, biomechanics and an understanding of learning and human development, Feldenkrais developed his method for dealing with his own injuries, which he later expanded into the full-fledged Feldenkrais Method®.
Throughout his life, Feldenkrais continued to incorporate ideas and methodologies pertinent to mental, physical and emotional human growth and development. Among the students who found his work helpful were Margaret Mead, David Ben-Gurion, Yehudi Menuhin, Helen Hayes and Julius Erving. His widely read books include: Body and Mature Behavior, Awareness Through Movement and The Potent Self .