By Natalie Grim and Nicole Neuman on March 14, 2022

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Photo Credits: Monthly Portland (MICHAEL NOVAK)

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Originally published on WDBJ7.com & WWNYtv.com

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Dominica born biotechnology inventor, Dr. Arlyne Simon, along with other prominent scientists was honored in the Women in STEM statue in The Smithsonian’s “If Then/She Can” Exhibit, which boasts the largest collection of all-female statues ever in one place.

Simon moved to the US to attend college at age 17, eventually landing at Georgia Tech as a chemical engineering major and working in biomimetics—the study and emulation of nature to solve problems.

A job offer at Intel brought her to Oregon, where she currently designs CAT scan and ultrasound machines. Meanwhile, she juggles roles as a mentor and speaker. As an ambassador in the If/Then program, she’s creating a set of STEM trading cards for kids to learn about real-life women scientists. She’s helped Girl Scouts in Atlanta develop business ideas and spoken at the Eugene
Science Center.

During her PhD studies in bioengineering at the University of Michigan, she says she “really gave birth” to her creativity. There, she worked on a blood test to detect when a cancer patient is rejecting a bone marrow transplant—a project for which she was issued her first patent in 2011.

While still in her doctoral program, she launched a biotech start-up called PHASIQ with her professor and adviser Dr. Shuichi Takayama and a classmate, securing funding from the National Science Foundation.

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