Erik Winfree
Encyclopedia
Erik Winfree is an American computer scientist, bioengineer, and associate professor at California Institute of Technology
. He is a leading researcher into DNA computing
and DNA nanotechnology
.
In 1998, Winfree in collaboration with Nadrian Seeman
published the creation of two-dimensional lattices of DNA tiles using the "double crossover" motif
. These tile-based structures provided the capability to implement DNA computing, which was demonstrated by Winfree and Paul Rothemund in 2004, and for which they shared the 2006 Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology.
In 1999, he was named to the MIT
Technology Review
TR100
as one of the top 100 innovators in the world under the age of 35.
He graduated from the University of Chicago
with a BS, and from the Computation and Neural Systems program at the California Institute of Technology
with a PhD, where he studied with John Hopfield and Al Barr.
He was a Lewis Thomas Postdoctoral Fellow in Molecular Biology at Princeton University
. He was a 2000 MacArthur Fellow
. His father Arthur Winfree
, a theoretical biologist, was also a MacArthur Fellow.
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
. He is a leading researcher into DNA computing
DNA computing
DNA computing is a form of computing which uses DNA, biochemistry and molecular biology, instead of the traditional silicon-based computer technologies. DNA computing, or, more generally, biomolecular computing, is a fast developing interdisciplinary area...
and DNA nanotechnology
DNA nanotechnology
DNA nanotechnology is a branch of nanotechnology which uses the molecular recognition properties of DNA and other nucleic acids to create designed, artificial structures out of DNA for technological purposes. In this field, DNA is used as a structural material rather than as a carrier of genetic...
.
In 1998, Winfree in collaboration with Nadrian Seeman
Nadrian Seeman
Nadrian C. "Ned" Seeman is an American nanotechnologist and crystallographer known for inventing the field of DNA nanotechnology.Seeman studied biochemistry at the University of Chicago and crystallography at the University of Pittsburgh...
published the creation of two-dimensional lattices of DNA tiles using the "double crossover" motif
Structural motif
In a chain-like biological molecule, such as a protein or nucleic acid, a structural motif is a supersecondary structure, which appears also in a variety of other molecules...
. These tile-based structures provided the capability to implement DNA computing, which was demonstrated by Winfree and Paul Rothemund in 2004, and for which they shared the 2006 Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology.
In 1999, 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...
TR100
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 100 innovators in the world under the age of 35.
He graduated from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
with a BS, and from the Computation and Neural Systems program at the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
with a PhD, where he studied with John Hopfield and Al Barr.
He was a Lewis Thomas Postdoctoral Fellow in Molecular Biology at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. He was a 2000 MacArthur Fellow
MacArthur Fellows Program
The MacArthur Fellows Program or MacArthur Fellowship is an award given by the John D. and Catherine T...
. His father Arthur Winfree
Arthur Winfree
Arthur Taylor Winfree was a theoretical biologist at the University of Arizona. He was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States....
, a theoretical biologist, was also a MacArthur Fellow.
Works
- DNA Based Computers V: Dimacs Workshop DNA Based Computers V June 14-15, 1999 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Editors Erik Winfree, David K. Gifford, AMS Bookstore, 2000, ISBN 9780821820537
- Evolution as computation: DIMACS workshop, Princeton, January 1999, Editors Laura Faye Landweber, Erik Winfree, Springer, 2002, ISBN 9783540667094
- "DNA Computing by Self-Assembly", Ninth Annual Symposium on Frontiers of Engineering, National Academies Press, 2004, ISBN 9780309091398
- Algorithmic Bioprocesses, Editors Anne CondonAnne CondonAnne Elizabeth Condon is an Irish-Canadian computer scientist, a professor of computer science at the University of British Columbia. Her research focuses on computational complexity theory and bioinformatics...
, David Harel, Joost N. Kok, Arto Salomaa, Erik Winfree, Springer, 2009, ISBN 9783540888680
External links
- "Erik Winfree", Scientific Commons