Jonathan Sussman-Fort did his undergraduate work at Columbia University, in New York. Jonathan Sussman-Fort studied biomedical engineering and graduated cum laude.
Founded in 2000, the Columbia Department of Biomedical Engineering is both a teaching and research program. Recently, the work of one of its professors, Dr. Sam Sia, was featured on an episode of the documentary series Extreme Engineering.
During the episode, Dr. Sia talked about his “lab on a chip” device. This device can do much of the blood work traditionally done in a full-scale laboratory and deliver results in around 15 minutes, rather than the days it often takes technicians in conventional labs. The device is just a few inches in size and can be plugged into a smartphone; it analyzes blood drawn from the patient as it runs through tubes the width of a human hair.
Dr. Sia’s device has been field-tested by medical professionals working in Rwanda, and it has worked well so far. Dr. Sia envisions a future where his device and similar “digital health” tools will make it possible for patients to monitor their own conditions at home. He also spoke of digital health tools being used one day soon by astronauts on space missions.
