Dr. Jahanmir is a technology leader with more than 30 years experience in R&D and technology management. Prior to joining the management team at Mohawk Innovative Technology, Inc, (MiTi^®), Dr. Jahanmir served on the MiTi^®'s Board of Directors for two years. He has held technical and management positions in academia, US government, and industry prior to joining MiTi^®. His scientific and leadership contributions have been recognized by professional/technical societies with several prestigious awards. He has published over two hundred twenty papers and reports related to advanced materials (including biomedical materials) and manufacturing; and has given more than two hundred sixty lectures on these subjects. He has edited several books and conference proceedings on machining and wear of advanced materials. He holds three U.S. and Canadian Patents.

He is a member of the Industrial Advisory Committee of the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs (ASAIO), member of the International Society for Rotary Blood Pumps (ISRBP) and a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He has served ASME in various capacities; including ASME's Vice President for Research and chair of the Board on Research and Technology Development (2001 - present). He was elected Fellow (1992) and Honorary Life Member (1997) of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE). His awards include the ASME Mayo D. Hersey Award (2001), the STLE International Award (1997), and the ASME Dedicated Service Award (1995). He is listed in Who's Who in America and American Men and Women of Science. He received his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, magna cum laude, at the University of Washington in 1971; and his master's and doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1973 and 1976. Dr. Jahanmir was featured in the May 2004 Tribology & Lubrication Technology Article "20 minutes with Said Jahanmir" (PDF - 5.4 MB)

Hooshang Heshmat, Ph.D., Chairman & Chief Scientific Officer

Dr. Heshmat is President and CEO, and co-founder, of Mohawk Innovative Technology, Inc., an applied research and product development company specializing in turbomachinery, bearings, seals, active and passive dampers, and piston rings; including fluid film, dry lubricant and magnetic systems. He is a leading authority on foil bearings and powder lubrication technologies, with 24 years of experience. Dr. Heshmat has served as MiTi^®'s President and Technical Director since the company was established. He has succeeded in moving MiTi^® from a small R&D company to a major player in the advanced engineering field with less than forty employees.

Dr Heshmat received his B.S. from The Pennsylvania State University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He is an Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) and American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Fellow, was Chairman of the Research Committee on Tribology of ASME (1999 - 2000), and a member of the ASME Tribology Division Executive, Honors and Awards Committees. He holds 25 patents; has published over 110 papers; and has co-authored the chapter on Principles of Bearing Design for the Compressor Handbook and a Book on The Tribology of Interface Layers; he has received numerous STLE and ASME awards: STLE 1983 Wilbur Deutsch Memorial Award, STLE 1993 Captain Alfred E. Hunt Award, and STLE's 1996 Al Sonntag Award. ASME 1985 Burt L. Newkirk Award, ASME/RCT 1995 Creative Research Award and STLE's 1996 Al Sonntag Award, and the ASME 2002 Thomas A. Edison Patent Award. Dr. Heshmat was featured in the April 2004 Tribology & Lubrication Technology Article "20 minutes with Hooshang Heshmat " (PDF - 8.6 MB)

Board John Conte, MD is the Director of Heart and Heart/Lung Transplantation and Associate Professor of Surgery at the Johns Hopkins University Division of Cardiac Surgery. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, where he also spent a period of residency in addition to the Stanford University. His clinical and research interests are in the areas of adult cardiac surgery, cardiac and pulmonary transplantation, mechanical circulatory support, minimally invasive cardiac surgery, aortic surgery, gene therapy in organ transplantation, immunosuppression, and organ preservation. Prior to his present position at Johns Hopkins University he was associated with the University of Maryland Medical Center.

Frank Gold, MD is the Associate Dean of Organizational Ethics at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria and is Director of the Office of Human Research Oversight for the College of Medicine and Hospital Affiliates: OSF St. Francis Medical Center, Methodist Medical Center of Illinois, and Proctor Community Hospital. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado Medical School and a Fellow of the American College of Cardiologists. Before taking that position in October 2001, he was a clinical Electrophysiologist for the preceding 20 years, associated with HeartCare Midwest, Peoria, Illinois. He is involved in the Peoria Next Project, which is a consortium of scientists at the Caterpillar Tractor Company Research Technology Facility, the USDA National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Bradley University, the School of Medicine and the hospitals in Peoria, working towards inter-institutional research and collaboration for economic development in Peoria. He leads an Ethics Knowledge Community within Peoria Next that has been established to study the ethical and organizational issues of the Peoria NEXT project, and develop interdisciplinary educational programs in ethics across the spectrum of scientific discipline within Peoria NEXT.

Walter Pae, MD is a thoracic surgeon at the Hershey Medical Center, at PSU. He is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine and spent his residency at the Hershey Medical Center. His clinical and research interests include general adult cardiac surgery, cardiac transplantation, thoracic aortic surgery, mitral valve reconstruction, surgery-atrial fibrillation, and ventricular assist devices. He has published widely on left ventricular assist devices and total artificial hearts in archival journals that include Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Perfusion, American College of Cardiology, ASAIO Journal, and others.

Francis Pagani, MD PhD, is Director of Heart Transplant Program and Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Michigan Hospital. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, where he spent his residency and internship. His clinical and research interests include Heart-lung transplantation, adult cardiac surgery, heart transplantation and ventricular assist devices, use of artificial hearts in treatment of end stage heart disease, and xenotransplantation. He has published several archival papers related to heart surgery in prestigious journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Circulation, and Journal of Thoracic Cardiovascular Surgery.