July's Science Cafe Speaker
Meet Myron Cohen, M.D., our special guest for July’s Carolina Science Cafe. He’s a busy man, so we’re grateful he took a few minutes out of his day to answer our questions.
Where did you grow up? Chicago
What did you want to be when you were a kid? A journalist
How did you get interested in science? After serving as editor of the high school paper, I started at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana wanting to study journalism. My first year of college, a very good friend became ill and later died. I spent a lot of time with him at the hospital, and I guess that’s how I first became interested in medicine and decided to study pre-med. When I took organic chemistry, not only did I absolutely love it, but I was really, really good at it, and that helped me realize that I was on the right path.
In one sentence, describe your job: I’m a catalyst for synergy among biomedical faculty at UNC.
What’s a special talent/trick/skill/hobby you have that you’re colleagues don’t know about? Well, let’s see. I can’t sing. I can’t dance. I can’t type. I’m a pretty good skier.
If someone wrote you a blank check to explore any aspect of your field’s research, what would you want to do and why? Redouble our efforts to cure HIV disease. We’re pretty far along as it is.
Thanks, Dr. Cohen. That’s good stuff. You can read more about Dr. Cohen’s efforts here.
Please join us on Thursday, July 7, at 6 p.m. (NOTE THE NEW TIME!) for this special science cafe:
The Beginning (and End?) of the AIDS Pandemic: A 30-Year Journey
Downtown Chapel Hill
Sponsored by Sigma XI
Jonathan Frederick is the director of the North Carolina Science Festival. He likes mango popsicles.
