Notable Iranian Americans in the News
Iranian Americans are among the most accomplished immigrants in the United States and around the world. Over the past couple of weeks a number of Iranian Americans have come to the attention of the public for their accomplishments in various fields. PAAIA is pleased to highlight the accomplishments of some of these individuals and we extend our sincere congratulations to them for a job well done.
Bobak Ferdowsi – NASA Flight Director
Bobak Ferdowsi is now as well-known for his hairstyle as he is for his role as the Flight Director of the successful landing of the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Mission.
Ferdowsi, a 32-year-old graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was instrumental in ensuring that the $2.5 billion rover landed safely on Mars on Monday morning. The rover has already beamed back numerous pictures of the planet, bringing fruit to the hard works of engineers and scientists such as Ferdowsi.
Nima Arkani-Hamed – Recipient of Fundamental Physical Prize
Dr. Nima Arkani-Hamed is a professor of physics at the Institute for Advanced Study’s School of Natural Sciences in Princeton. On August 2, 2012, he was named as one of the nine recipients of the inaugural Fundamental Physics Prize.
Arkani-Hamed received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of California in Berkley and joined the Institute for Advanced Study after serving as a Professor of Physics at the Harvard University. Arkani-Hamed will receive $3 million and, along with the other recipients of the award, will form a selection committee for future prize winners.
Omid Farrokhzad – Harvard Medical School Researcher
Dr. Omid Farrokhzad and his colleagues at Harvard Medical School have produced what is being called a “paradigm shift” in cancer treatment. Farrokhzad and his colleagues have made a drug in nano scale, which allows it to identify and target only cancer cells, thus minimizing the common chemotherapy side effects that occur when healthy cells are also impacted by cancer regimen. According to Farrokhzad, tests on animals shows that the drug can reach “cancer cells 500-1000 percent more than chemotherapy.”
Farrokhzad, an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and a physician-scientist in the Department of Anesthesiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital has extensive experience in developing therapeutic nanoparticle technologies and pioneered development and screening of multifunctional nanoparticles for medical applications.
Over the next few weeks, as part of our image building efforts, PAAIA will provide more indepth coverage of these individuals to our community. Stayed tuned.
