Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/83317
FIONA CRAWFORD The Roskamp Institute in Sarasota is dedicated to developing medications and therapeutic treatments for neurological and neuropsychiatric diseases. Education: Joint B.S. with honors in Biochemistry and Genetics, Queen's University of Belfast; Ph.D. in Medical Genetics, University of London Career goals: To develop better diagnostic tools and novel therapeutics to alleviate human diseases. Inspiration: A National Geographic article on Recombinant DNA technology "A-ha" moment: Developing the X-ray that revealed the mutated DNA sequence from the first early onset Alzheimer's family in which we identified genetic mutations. Favorite part of the job: Continuous discovery and the promise of achieving the goal of helping patients and their families. Favorite sci-fi: "Doctor Who"/"Star Trek" Vice President Roskamp Institute www.archerpharma.com SUMI HELAL Gainesville-based Pervasa develops software (Middleware and tools) for easy integration and programming of devices and sensors. Such a system could connect and deliver sensor data (such as a car counter on a point in the highway or a capacity counter in a bus) into a software server for analysis. Education: Bachelor of Engineering, Alexandria University, Egypt; Masters of Science, Purdue University; Ph.D. in Computer Sciences, Purdue University Inspiration: During early success of my research work on smart homes for the elderly, journalists always asked when the technology would be available to the public. The nagging question inspired me to create a technology that would put the smart home "in a box." This was the beginning of the Pervasa technology. Career goals: Help create the necessary elements of an ecosystem for tomorrow's Smart Space industry. Most important failure: The first smart home deployment—the Gator Tech Smart House, near the UF campus. The technology was rigid, non-replicable and difficult to extend or change. President & CEO Pervasa Inc. www.pervasa.com florida.HIGH.TECH 2012 47