Professor honored by President Obama for work in the sciences


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Mark S. Humayun, director of the USC Institute for Biomedical Therapeutics and a professor of ophthalmology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and biomedical engineering at the Viterbi School of Engineering, is one of eight scientists to receive the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from U.S. President Barack Obama.

In a statement from the White House, Obama recognized the achievements of Humayun and the other honorees.

“The knowledge produced by these Americans today will carry our country’s legacy of innovation forward and continue to help countless others around the world,” Obama said.

Established by Congress in 1980 and first awarded in 1985, the National Medal of Technology and Innovation is awarded to individuals, teams or companies that strengthen U.S. competitiveness through improving the technological workforce.

Winners of the national medal are first nominated for review by an evaluation committee appointed by the secretary of commerce. The vetted nominees are then turned over to the secretary, who makes the final recommendations to the President for his selection.

Humayun, the third Trojan to be awarded the honor after Allen Puckett in 1985 and George Lucas in 2004, has won global acclaim for his leading role in developing Argus II, a retinal eye implant that assists those with retinitis pigmentosa in regaining key features of their vision.

Humayun is widely respected by his colleagues at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Rohit Varma, Humayun’s successor as the director of the USC Eye Institute, is particularly proud of his co-worker’s achievements.

“One of the reasons the USC Eye Institute has been ranked in the top 10 ophthalmology departments in the U.S. is because of innovative scientists like Mark who guide and inspire us,” Varma said. “It is a privilege to have him as a colleague at the USC Eye Institute.”

Humayun, the only ophthalmologist to be a member of both the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Engineering, follows a personal hero of his, Charles Kelman, in being a recipient of the National Medal. Awarded the Medal in 1992, Kelman revolutionized cataract surgery by introducing ultrasound instruments that dramatically reduced recovery time for patients.

When asked if he had advice for USC students planning their future careers, Humayun stressed the importance of finding a passion.

“If you love the things you do, you will want to do them right away, and you will want to do them well,” Humayun said. “For me, developing bioelectronic implants for medicine and, in particular, ophthalmology is a passion, and I love my work and hence, I hardly ever procrastinate.”

 

Editor’s Note: This post was updated to reflect that Mark Humayun is a professor in both the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the Viterbi School of Engineering.