Lee Salk (died May 2, 1992) was an American

child psychologist Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why humans grow, change, and adapt across the course of their lives. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, ...

and

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

who is credited with discovering the calming effect the sound of a heartbeat has on

infant In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to juveniles of ...

s.New York Times obituary
Retrieved 2011-01-07. During the last third of his life, Salk made a great deal of public appearances on various

television show A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming platf ...

s and

lecture hall A lecture hall or lecture theatre is a large room used for lectures, typically at a college or university. Unlike flexible lecture rooms and classrooms with capacities normally below one hundred, the capacity of lecture halls can sometimes be m ...

s. He used these venues to dispense advice on how to rear children, especially infants.Seattle Times obituary
Retrieved 2011-01-07.

Early life

Salk was the younger son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Dora (Press) and Daniel Salk. He was born and reared in New York.

Jonas Salk Jonas Edward Salk (; born Jonas Salk; October 28, 1914June 23, 1995) was an American virologist and medical researcher who developed one of the first successful polio vaccines. He was born in New York City and attended the City College of New ...

, inventor of the polio vaccine, was his older brother. Salk attended the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Professional work

Salk's published work investigated the effect of retirement on mortality, the effect of the mother's heartbeat on the newborn, and the relationship between adverse maternal and perinatal conditions and later self-destructive behavior. He was the author of eight books.

Personal life

Salk was married twice, first to Kerstin and then Mary Jane. He had two children from his first marriage, a son Eric and daughter Pia. Salk was briefly married to Catherine H. Waters of South Carolina. Their marriage took place in 1982, in New York. Salk developed cancer and died in hospital in Manhattan at age 65 on May 2, 1992. Salk was a professor at Cornell University Medical Center.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salk, Lee Writers from New York (state) 1926 births 1992 deaths University of Michigan alumni American child psychologists 20th-century American Jews Jewish physicians American people of Russian-Jewish descent 20th-century American physicians