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Two faculty named fellows of the National Academy of Inventors

Two Stanford faculty members have been named fellows of the National Academy of Inventors, the highest professional distinction awarded to academic inventors.

Paul Yock (left) and Shan Wang. (Image credit: Chris Michel and L.A. Cicero)

The recipients were selected based on their “innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and welfare of society,” according to the academy.

The Stanford recipients are:

Paul Yock, MD, the Martha Meier Weiland Professor in the School of Medicine and a professor of bioengineering. He is the founder and director emeritus of the Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign, a training program for health technology innovation. He was recognized for his work in inventing new medical devices including the Rapid Exchange ™ catheter system, which is now the primary cardiac angioplasty and stenting technology in use worldwide, and a Doppler-guided vascular access system known as the Smart Needle™ and PD-Access.™ He authored the fundamental patents for mechanical intravascular ultrasound imaging, co-founded several medical technology companies, and holds more than 50 U.S. patents.

Shan X. Wang, the Leland T. Edwards Professor in the School of Engineering and a professor of materials science & engineering and of electrical engineering and, by courtesy, of radiology. He directs the Center for Magnetic Nanotechnology. His research and inventions span magnetic biochips, in vitro diagnostics, cancer biomarkers, magnetic nanoparticles, magnetic sensors, magnetoresistive random access memory, and magnetic integrated inductors. He co-founded three high-tech start-ups in Silicon Valley, one of which launched a first-of-its-kind lung cancer early diagnostic assay, and holds 65 issued or pending U.S. patents.

The new members will be inducted in a ceremony on June 15, 2022, in Phoenix, Arizona. The NAI was founded in 2010 to recognize and encourage inventors with patents issued from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and translate the inventions of its members to benefit society.