Schmidt Science Fellows are harnessing the potential of interdisciplinary science to advance discovery and tackle some of the world’s most pressing problems.
Five of our 2018 Fellows shared their science, their ambition for the future, and their vision of the impact they hope to achieve at a special event at Rhodes House, Oxford, UK – watch their engaging and inspirational talks in the videos below.
inSPIREd saw the Schmidt Science Fellows take over the iconic Milner Hall of Rhodes House, nestled in the center of Oxford’s dreaming spires. We transformed this historic venue into a high-tech arena of cutting-edge science for one evening in July 2019. inSPIREd was a special evening of engaging science talks and networking with an international audience, featuring talks on soft robotics, cancer detection, combating species extinction, and advanced, wearable tech.
Welcome to inSPIREd – Dr Megan Wheeler
Join our Executive Director and the live audience in Oxford for an introduction to our inSPIREDd speakers.
Dr Ryan Truby – Can soft materials revolutionize the very meaning of robotics?
Ryan outlines his vision of a world where robots are all around us – untethered from rigid construction and bulky power supplies. By combining materials science with robotics, Ryan explains how his interdisciplinary pivot as a Schmidt Science Fellow is contributing to this revolution.
Dr Jina Ko – Can a fusion of engineering, biology, and chemistry help us to harness the immune system to fight rare diseases?
Jina’s research aims to significantly improve our ability to detect the very earliest signs of cancer and other diseases. Join her to explore how her approach bringing together engineering, biology, and chemistry could offer potential benefits for patients around the world.
Dr Hal Holmes – Can a ground-breaking DNA scanner stop the illegal trade in endangered wildlife?
We are in the midst of the Earth’s sixth mass extinction – a catastrophic event being driven by human activity. Hal aims to play his part in tackling this emergency by helping to stem the trade of endangered species. Hear how his work in a cancer therapeutics lab is helping him develop a DNA technology to identify illicit from legitimately traded wildlife products.
Dr Xiwen Gong – Is the future of wearable electronics fully integrated e-skins?
With our electronic devices becoming ever more integral parts of our daily lives, fully flexible, wearable electronics offer potentially boundless applications in healthcare and personal entertainment. Here, Xiwen outlines the challenges in making displays that are genuinely ‘skin-like’ and how new techniques are making them a reality.
Dr Yogesh Goyal – Will new insights into cancer cells overturn accepted thinking to give us new ways to beat drug-resistance?
Yogesh examines how science is providing entirely new understanding on how cancer cells become drug-resistant. He explains how this has the potential to unlock powerful new ways to treat cancer and prevent the disease from coming back in patients.