ACM TechNews

MIT Lauds S'pore Scientist

Straits Times (08/26/08) Kesava, Shobana

Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT's) Technology Review magazine has named Singaporean biochemist Victor Tong one of the top 35 young innovators in science and technology for developing computer models that have the potential to usher in an age of personalized medicine. Tong, who is also trained in computer science, worked with computer scientists, virologists, and chemists to map how the different genetic makeups of people can impact how they react to viruses. The computer models have a 90 percent accuracy rate of identifying the correct method for creating an immune response. The research means that people who do not respond to a certain vaccine could quickly have an alternative that is based on their genetic code. Tong was trained in Singapore and works at the Institute of Infocomm Research under the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research. He always loved computer games and programming, and saw the SARS outbreak as an opportunity to merge those interests with biology. "SARS made me think about how I could make the maximum impact to improve people's lives," Tong says.

http://www.straitstimes.com/Singapore/Story/STIStory_271922.html

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