Each year, TEDMED relies on a carefully selected group of passionate, objective experts spanning the biomedical spectrum from across the globe, including faculty, post docs, graduate students, medical students, public health professionals, entrepreneurs, innovators and science journalists. These experts help assess the credibility of the science upon which TEDMED’s editorial priorities are based.
We deeply appreciate the time and energy our 2016 Research Scholars devote to enriching the quality of our curation process. We asked them to share more about their attraction to the program and their experience so far — here is what a few of them had to say:
“I’ve loved seeing the diversity of nominations, and the challenge of whittling down the array of fascinating people to those who will make a great TEDMED program,” says Layla McCay. “Having had the experience of being in the TEDMED audience myself, I know I want to encounter ideas I can trust, be thrilled by game changers, find synergies across disciplines, and start thinking differently about how things are done – and could be done. I’ve found the experience of reviewing nominations to be rather like a being a judge at The Moth storytelling show: how engaging are the nominees’ stories? Inspiring? True? How compellingly can nominees present their ideas to a discerning TEDMED audience? But it’s made even more interesting because I also have to ask: what’s the evidence behind nominees’ ideas, why are they the right people to speak on the topic, and how might these ideas have an genuine, meaningful impact on people’s health?”
“TEDMED makes a communication impact without oversimplifying research in science and health. This is my goal too. I wanted to learn with those who reach and inspire people across cultures from all walks of life,” observes Amy Price. “Reviewing nominations has opened my eyes to the value and power of hard work clothed in elegant simplicity.”
Maya Das wanted to be a Research Scholar in order to “contribute to a forum that brings together people who are seeking innovative solutions to tackle the complexities of health and medicine.” Her experience reviewing nominations has allowed her “to devote time to exploring current issues in health and medicine, to consider broader public policy questions related to clinical research, and to systematically examine what makes someone a credible and engaging ‘expert.’”
With great pride, we recognize the dedication of the 2016 class of TEDMED Research Scholars:
Ron Alfa, MA – Neuroscience, Medicine
Bhagwan Aggarwal, PhD, MBA – Healthcare Industry
Aimee Arnoldussen, PhD – Neuroscience, Medical Devices
Benjamin Bearnot, MD – Medicine
Christos Bergeles, PhD – Medical Imaging & Robotics
Alexander Blum, MS – Telecommunications, International Development
Edward Cliff, BMedSci (Hons) – Medicine
Maya Das, MD, JD – Clinical Research, Health Informatics
Lisa Fitzpatrick, MD, MPH – Medicine, Public Health
Jonathan Fritz, JD, MS – Healthcare IT
Mary Joy Garcia-Dia, DNP, MA, RN – Nursing, Healthcare IT
Holly Goodwin, MBA – Applied Physiology & Bioinformatics
Emilie Grasset, PhD – Immunology
Amy Ho, MD – Medicine
Andrew M. Ibrahim MD, MSc – Medicine, Health Policy, Design
Sherese Johnson, MPH, PMP – Public Health
Neeti Kanodra, MBBS – Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine
Syed Khalid, BS – Medicine, Medical Devices, Neuroscience
Tamar Lasky, PhD – Epidemiology
Layla McCay, MBChB, MS – Health Policy, Psychiatry
Vanessa Mason, MPH – Digital Health
Maria Noviani, MD – Medicine, Cellular Therapy, Immunology
Madhukar Patel, MD, MBA, ScM – Surgery, Bioengineering
Bryon Petersen, PhD – Stem Cell Biology, Bioengineering
Miguel Pineda, MD – Medicine (Urology)
Amy Price, PhD – Neuroscience
Priya Raja, BA – Medicine, Public Policy
Sudah Yehuda Kovesh Shaheb, MD – Endocrinology, Medical Anthropology
Arpi Siyahian, PhD – Biotechnology
Jing Wang, PhD, MSN, MPH, RN – Nursing
Sebastian Wernicke, PhD – Bioinformatics
Teresa Wilson, MA – Healthcare IT
Flaura Winston, MD, PhD – Pediatrics, Behavioral Science, Injury Prevention
Wendy Youngblood, MA – Education, Humanities
Marta Gaia Zanchi, PhD – Digital Health, Biodesign Innovation