Prof Michael Merzenich | pioneer in brain plasticity research
Posit Science Corporation, USA | United States

For more than three decades, Dr. Merzenich has been a leading pioneer in brain plasticity research. In the late 1980s, Dr. Merzenich was on the team that invented the cochlear implant. In 1996, Dr. Merzenich was the founding CEO of Scientific Learning Corporation which markets and distributes software that applies principles of brain plasticity to assist children with language learning and reading. As co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Posit Science, he heads the company's global team. Dr. Merzenich has published more than 150 articles in leading peer-reviewed journals, received numerous awards and prizes, and been granted more than 50 patents for his work. He and his work have been highlighted in hundreds of books about the brain, learning, rehabilitation, and plasticity. Dr. Merzenich's work is also often covered in the popular press, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Time, Forbes, Discover, and Newsweek and he has appeared extensively on television. In 2007, he retired from his long career at UCSF as Francis A. Sooy Professor and Co-Director of the Keck Center for Integrative Neuroscience. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1999 and the Institute of Medicine in 2008.