Roundup Creative Genius

Creative Genius

Scientific breakthroughs require creative thinking, and art is often an expression of thought. It’s no wonder that many of our researchers are also artists, and that creating art provides a way for them to think in a different way.

Here is what our scientists have to say about the arts, music—and cooking! They are putting the A into STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and medicine).

Two recent acrylic paintings by Jennifer Stone, Ph.D.

Jennifer Stone, Ph.D.

In my life, art and science are intertwined and sometimes inseparable. I have loved to draw since I was a child, and I am learning to paint as an adult. Visual images have always had profound effects on me, conveying information about the world, raising curiosity, and evoking emotion. Our research focuses on anatomical analyses of the inner ear and the brain, so the ability to carefully observe and to detect differences in structure is key to our work. Scientists must convey information to colleagues and to the public using digital schematics and photographs. I am fortunate to work in a profession that allows me to enjoy both science and art almost every day!

Jennifer Stone, Ph.D., a member of HHF’s Hearing Restoration Project, is a research professor in the University of Washington’s department of otolaryngology–head and neck surgery, where she is also the director of research. She is a 1995, 1996, and 2000 Emerging Research Grants scientist.

The A in STEAM

Read more about how our grantees enjoy the arts as much as they love science.

Noah R. Druckenbrod, Ph.D., 2015 You may have heard of “Ancient Aliens” on the History Channel. About three years ago, as a favor to one of the producers I’d met, I appeared on a couple of episodes. It was a fun experience—but I was sure to make no scientifically dubious statements, unlike some of their other so-called experts. Druckenbrod’s grant was generously funded by The Barbara Epstein Foundation.

Richard A. Felix II, Ph.D., 2016 I am a karaoke enthusiast. I usually try to perform new songs onstage, but I often cannot resist Celine Dion. Felix’s grant was generously funded by Royal Arch Research Assistance.

Elizabeth McCullagh, Ph.D., 2016 My husband (a chemistry professor) and I love to brew hoppy beers and make our own goat, cheddar, and other cheeses. McCullagh’s grant was generously funded by Royal Arch Research Assistance.

Ngoc-Nhi Luu, M.D., Dr. Med., 2017 I cook to unwind. Everything related to preparing meals is relaxing to me: food shopping, researching international ingredients, composing creative meals from limited seasonal offerings, and finally making even picky eaters happy. Strolling through supermarkets was always the first thing I did after exams in medical school. Luu’s grant was generously funded by The Estate of Howard Schum. Timothy Balmer, Ph.D., 2017 and 2022 I repair and modify mechanical watch movements, focusing on those worn by U.S. service members, including a Rolex that kept time on the wrist of a close friend during the Korean War, and an Elgin worn by a pilot in World War II. Balmer’s 2017 grant was generously funded by the Les Paul Foundation.

Inyong Choi, Ph.D., 2017 When I was a doctoral student, I was a huge fan of “An Introduction to the Psychology of Hearing,” a textbook by Cambridge professor Brian C.J. Moore, Ph.D. I attended his visiting lecture when I was conducting research at Boston University and I even brought his book with me to get autographed. After his talk, I was unable to reach him through the crowd and instead went out to dinner with a friend. Shortly after our meal started, incredibly, he came into the same restaurant and agreed to autograph my book!

Three years later, I crossed paths with Moore again and asked if I could translate his book into Korean. He agreed, and it took me the next two years to finish and publish the translation. This work enabled me to deeply understand the fundamentals of hearing science more than ever before. Choi’s grant was generously funded by Royal Arch Research Assistance.

Senthilvelan Manohar, Ph.D., 2017 My interest in biochemistry came from my mother’s cooking, in a small village in India. She used a lot of spices in her food preparation, and as a child I always wondered how each spice influenced my taste and perception in general. I asked my mom all about the spices and why she chose to add them to our food. My curiosity for small molecules affecting perception has not faded since. Manohar’s grant was generously funded by Hyperacusis Research.

Christina Reuterskiöld, Ph.D., 2017 A novel I wrote is almost finished so I don’t want to say more just yet. We will see if someone wants to publish it—if not, it will be a story for my family! I like to cook and I am an amazing baker. I make better Swedish cinnamon buns than anyone else, if I may say so myself. Reuterskiöld’s grant was generously funded by Royal Arch Research Assistance.

Sandeep Sheth, Ph.D., 2017 One of my goals in life is to learn to play at least one musical instrument, so I am learning to play the guitar. Most of the people I know would be surprised to know that I was an average student in school but did very well in sports and cultural activities like singing and dancing. I have several medals to show for it.

David Ehrlich, Ph.D., 2018 My younger brother Max and I collaborated to design a board game. Players make up definitions for acronyms to impress their friends and family. Perhaps some inspiration came from the many acronyms used in research.

David Jung, M.D., Ph.D., 2018 I played violin for many years through college and grew up with classical music. In my spare time I enjoy attending concerts, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The arts scene here in Boston spoils us, with the BSO one of its crown jewels.

Tenzin Ngodup, Ph.D., 2018 I am the first scientist in the family—perhaps one of the first Tibetan neuroscientists in the exiled Tibetan community! I am working on a cookbook about traditional Tibetan dishes, a cuisine that reflects the lifestyle of Tibetans living at more than 10,000 feet above sea level. For instance, rice is a rare commodity so a dish like dre-si (sweet rice) is served mainly during special occasions like the Tibetan New Year. Ngodup’s grant was generously funded by the Les Paul Foundation.

Khaleel Razak, Ph.D., 2018 I enjoy taking photos. Thinking about their composition makes me stop and look at a subject from multiple perspectives—I find that it’s not unlike examining research data. Razak’s grant was generously funded by Royal Arch Research Assistance.

Soumen Roy, Ph.D., 2018 I love to cook. During school vacations, I volunteered at nonprofit kitchens where we sometimes cooked for 50,000 people. More recently I cooked more than 10 different, intricate courses for 100 people. Cooking gives me endless energy! It is also relaxing and therapeutic, and helps tune my planning skills and creativity, which I truly believe helps my research.

A. Catalina Vélez-Ortega, Ph.D.,

2018 I take dance lessons and participate in flash mobs and other dance performances. But I used to be extremely shy. As a child I simply could not look anyone in the eye when talking to them. I was also terrified of being onstage. It was only after college that I decided to finally correct the problem. Interestingly, taking sign language lessons was

Bryan K. Ward, M.D.

I first got interested in art in middle school. My grandmother was a painter and encouraged me to draw and paint. I took art throughout high school, even taking AP Art and building a portfolio. It was a great way to relax, and I enjoyed learning that emotion could be expressed almost as a filter when you create a representation of something. I fell in love with watercolor; I found it relaxing and I could do it anywhere. I find that sometimes the same images are repeated in the medical literature, and sometimes they aren’t anatomically correct, or don’t emphasize the anatomy best for a particular article. So I started trying to create my own images to make different points. Currently, about half of my papers or book chapters have some artwork. During COVID, I did a few other random pieces while stuck at home. I actually just sent these to a family friend who was interested, so I have some compilations. Doing the art is fun for me! I really never thought the art would get anyone’s attention so that’s been fun, too.

A 2020 ERG scientist, Bryan Ward, M.D., is an associate professor of otolaryngology–head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Opposite: Bryan K. Ward, M.D., drew this illustration to accompany a paper in Frontiers in Neurology. For more of his artwork, see hhf.org/bryan-k-ward.

Below: Gail Seigel, Ph.D. (far right), rehearses with the Clarinet Collection, one of two music groups she plays with.

Gail M. Seigel, Ph.D.

I find there are a lot of links between science and music. Many of the skills that I’ve learned as a musician translate to my career in science. In music, as in science, there is a preciseness and an orderliness in following the tempo, playing the right notes at the right time, and practicing techniques for the best results. There is an element of creativity in both science and music that allows us to express ourselves as individuals. People who play music together bond with one another just as scientists working together on a project orchestrate their efforts. So, I would say that music and science have been intertwined throughout my life in a synergistic way to the benefit of both. I can’t imagine one without the other.

A 2019 ERG scientist, Gail M. Seigel, Ph.D., is a research professor in the Center for Hearing and Deafness at the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, where she runs the Ocular and Auditory Neuroscience Lab.

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very helpful. Sign language forced me to stare at people to be able to communicate. It was terrifying at first, but it started to feel very natural after just a few months. Vélez-Ortega’s grant was generously funded by Cochlear Americas.

Philippe Vincent, Ph.D., 2018 I enjoy making scale models. I can spend all day assembling and painting the different parts. Patience in both electrophysiology and making models is paramount. I recently completed the Air France Airbus A380 (scale 1:125). Given its size (roughly two feet long and wide), assembling and painting were pretty challenging.

Pierre Apostolides, Ph.D., 2019 When I was younger my hobby was tinkering with audio recording equipment, analog synthesizers, etc. This has come in quite handy for my current work because a lot of our auditory experiments require significant background knowledge of acoustics and signal processing.

Ross Williamson, Ph.D., 2020 I’ve always been obsessed with music. I grew up listening to the likes of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, which naturally progressed into learning to play electric guitar. Trying to understand how guitar effects pedals worked led to a love of the mathematics behind signal processing.