Adam Cohen (scientist)
Encyclopedia
Adam Ezra Cohen is Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Chemistry Biology and of Physics at Harvard University
.
He has received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and been selected by MIT Technology Review
to the TR35
list of the world's top innovators under 35.
from the Stanford in 2006 with W.E. Moerner and a Ph.D in theoretical physics
from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar, in 2003. He received his A.B. degree in chemistry and physics from Harvard College
in 2001. He attended Hunter College High School
, a gifted magnet school in New York City
, where he graduated first in his class. He is the son of Joel E. Cohen
, Abby Rockefeller Mauze Professor of Populations at Rockefeller University
in New York.
.
in his bedroom, which led to winning the Westinghouse Science Talent Search. For his dissertation at Stanford, Cohen invented the Anti-Brownian Electrokinetic trap, known as the ABEL trap, a machine capable of trapping and manipulating individual biomolecules in solution. His success in the Westinghouse competition led the then mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, to declare March 12, 1997 "Adam Ezra Cohen Day."
. and a New Innovator Award from the National Institute of Health. In 2007, he was named to the MIT
Technology Review
TR35
as one of the top 35 innovators in the world under the age of 35.
In high school, Cohen won the Westinghouse Science Talent Search, now Intel Science Talent Search
, for an invention that involved building a scanning tunneling
microscope in his bedroom. He was also inducted into the National Gallery for America’s Young Inventors for the same invention.
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
He has received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and been selected by MIT Technology Review
Technology Review
Technology Review is a magazine published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It was founded in 1899 as "The Technology Review", and was re-launched without the "The" in its name on April 23, 1998 under then publisher R. Bruce Journey...
to the TR35
TR35
The TR35 is an annual list published by MIT Technology Review magazine, naming the world's top 35 innovators under the age of 35.Some of the most famous winners of the award include Larry Page and Sergey Brin , Linus Torvalds , Jerry Yang , Jonathan Ive , Mark Zuckerberg...
list of the world's top innovators under 35.
Education
Cohen earned a Ph.D. in experimental physicsExperimental physics
Within the field of physics, experimental physics is the category of disciplines and sub-disciplines concerned with the observation of physical phenomena in order to gather data about the universe...
from the Stanford in 2006 with W.E. Moerner and a Ph.D in theoretical physics
Theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics which employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena...
from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar, in 2003. He received his A.B. degree in chemistry and physics from Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
in 2001. He attended Hunter College High School
Hunter College High School
Hunter College High School is a New York City secondary school for intellectually gifted students located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. It is administered by Hunter College, a senior college of the City University of New York. Although it is not operated by the New York City Department of...
, a gifted magnet school in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he graduated first in his class. He is the son of Joel E. Cohen
Joel E. Cohen
Joel E. Cohen is a mathematical biologist. He is currently Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of Populations at the Rockefeller University in New York City and at the Earth Institute of Columbia University, where he holds a joint appointment in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, the...
, Abby Rockefeller Mauze Professor of Populations at Rockefeller University
Rockefeller University
The Rockefeller University is a private university offering postgraduate and postdoctoral education. It has a strong concentration in the biological sciences. It is also known for producing numerous Nobel laureates...
in New York.
Research
Cohen's research combines building physical tools to probe biological molecules, using nanofabrication, lasers, microfluidics, electronics and biochemistry to generate data. His current research includes single-molecule spectroscopy of microbial rhodopsins, the motion of bacteria in mucus, and new magneto-optical and chiroptical effects in organic molecules. In 2010 and 2011, Cohen taught Physical Sciences 1, Harvard's introductory course in chemistry and physics, with Hongkun ParkHongkun Park
Hongkun Park is a professor of chemistry and of physics at Harvard University. He received his B.S. in chemistry at Seoul National University in 1990, and his Ph.D. in physical chemistry at Stanford University in 1996 under Richard Zare. From 1996 to 1999 he was a postdoctoral fellow at Lawrence...
.
Inventions
In fifth grade, Cohen invented an "alarm" clock that woke him by playing a prerecorded message. In high school, Cohen created an eye-tracking apparatus for neuroscience experiments to benefit the disabled, an electrochemical hard disk drive, and a device that applies physics to allow his eye movements to maneuver his computer cursor. He also invented and built a nanoscale patterning technique using an electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopeScanning tunneling microscope
A scanning tunneling microscope is an instrument for imaging surfaces at the atomic level. Its development in 1981 earned its inventors, Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer , the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1986. For an STM, good resolution is considered to be 0.1 nm lateral resolution and...
in his bedroom, which led to winning the Westinghouse Science Talent Search. For his dissertation at Stanford, Cohen invented the Anti-Brownian Electrokinetic trap, known as the ABEL trap, a machine capable of trapping and manipulating individual biomolecules in solution. His success in the Westinghouse competition led the then mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, to declare March 12, 1997 "Adam Ezra Cohen Day."
Awards
In 2010 Cohen won the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers under the Department of DefenseUnited States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
. and a New Innovator Award from the National Institute of Health. In 2007, he was named to the MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
Technology Review
Technology Review
Technology Review is a magazine published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It was founded in 1899 as "The Technology Review", and was re-launched without the "The" in its name on April 23, 1998 under then publisher R. Bruce Journey...
TR35
TR35
The TR35 is an annual list published by MIT Technology Review magazine, naming the world's top 35 innovators under the age of 35.Some of the most famous winners of the award include Larry Page and Sergey Brin , Linus Torvalds , Jerry Yang , Jonathan Ive , Mark Zuckerberg...
as one of the top 35 innovators in the world under the age of 35.
In high school, Cohen won the Westinghouse Science Talent Search, now Intel Science Talent Search
Intel Science Talent Search
The Intel Science Talent Search , known for its first 57 years as the Westinghouse Science Talent Search is a research-based science competition in the United States for high school seniors. It has been referred to as "the nation's oldest and most prestigious" science competition. In his speech...
, for an invention that involved building a scanning tunneling
microscope in his bedroom. He was also inducted into the National Gallery for America’s Young Inventors for the same invention.