Naweed I. Syed is a Pakistani-born Canadian neuro-scientist. He is the first scientist to connect brain cells to a

silicon Silicon is a chemical element; it has symbol Si and atomic number 14. It is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic lustre, and is a tetravalent metalloid (sometimes considered a non-metal) and semiconductor. It is a membe ...

chip Chip may refer to: Food * Chip (snack), thinly sliced and deep-fried gastro item ** Potato chips (US) or crisp (UK) * Chips (fried potato strips) (UK) or french fries (US) (common as a takeout side) * Game chips, thin chip/French fries * Choco ...

, creating the world's first

neurochip A neurochip is an integrated circuit chip (such as a microprocessor) that is designed for interaction with neuronal cells. Formation It is made of silicon that is doped in such a way that it contains EOSFETs (electrolyte- oxide-semiconductor ...

. Syed has travelled worldwide giving lectures and presentations about the human mind and his mini-chip. Dr. Naweed Syed is a professor at the

Cumming School of Medicine The Cumming School of Medicine (previously Faculty of Medicine) is the medical school of the University of Calgary. It was established in 1967 and adopted its current name in 2014. It is one of two medical schools in Alberta and one of 17 in Ca ...

University of Calgary {{Infobox university , name = University of Calgary , image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , former ...

. He also served for 10 years as the Department Head of anatomy and cell biology, Research Director HBI at the CSM and also the Postdoctoral Program Director – Office of the Vice President (Research) from 2012 – 2016. Syed has served and chaired almost all of the university's senior committees and was Special Advisor to Vice President Research for several years.

Research

Syed's research is focused at cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying brain development and plasticity. Specifically, he studies how networks of brain cells assemble during development and are modified throughout life to form the basis for learning and memory. He also investigates how various anesthetic agents affect communications between brain cells and induce cytotoxicity. After two decades of design, experiments, redesign and observations, Dr. Naweed's two-way brain-chip is almost ready for human trials. At first, the bionic chip will be used to manage patients with epilepsy – especially those who do not respond to any drugs present on our shelves. Syed has written more than 130 highly cited research papers published in

Nature (journal) ''Nature'' is a British weekly scientific journal founded and based in London, England. As a multidisciplinary publication, ''Nature'' features Peer review, peer-reviewed research from a variety of academic disciplines, mainly in science and t ...

Science (journal) ''Science'' is the peer review, peer-reviewed academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and one of the world's top academic journals. It was first published in 1880, is currently circulated weekly and h ...

Neuron (journal) ''Neuron'' is a biweekly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Cell Press, an imprint of Elsevier. Established in 1988, it covers neuroscience and related biological processes. The current editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also ...

and other prestigious journals and produced several dozen inventions and innovations.

Honours and recognition

Syed is the recipient of the following recognition awards: Outstanding Scientist Award from the Asian Community in Toronto (2004); Canadian Sensation Award from South Asian Media Express Network (2012); Distinguished Achievement Award for Outstanding Contributions to Biomedical Research by Pakistan-Canada Association (2012); Outstanding Collaboration Award, Schulich School of Engineering (2012); Canadians for Global Care Award of Recognition (2015). Syed has received recognition both in Pakistan and abroad for his immense services to the field of neuroscience. He is the recipient of the prestigious and the highly distinguished

Tamgha-e-Imtiaz Tamgha-e-Imtiaz (), also spelled as Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, is a state-organised honour of Pakistan. It is given to any civilian in Pakistan based on their achievements. While it is a civilian/military award, it can be bestowed upon officers of the ...

(Medal of Excellence) by the

government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

, and Canada-150 Medal by the

Canadian Senate The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they compose the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the British House of Lords, with its member ...

which both of which he received in 2017.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian people of Pakistani descent Canadian neuroscientists Canadian academics of Pakistani descent Canadian inventors Pakistani neuroscientists Pakistani inventors Recipients of Tamgha-e-Imtiaz {{Canada-scientist-stub