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| Dr. Benjamin S. Carson |
Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, who went from an angry street fighter in Detroit to become director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital, will deliver the keynote address at the opening ceremonies of the National Science Olympiad Friday, May 17, at the University of Delaware. The event begins at 6 p.m. in the Bob Carpenter Center and will be broadcast live on the World Wide Web at [www.udel.edu/scienceolympiad].
Cosponsored by the National Science Olympiad, the University and DuPont, the event brings together the best middle and high school aged scientists from across the nation for two days of scientific competition of the most innovative kind.
Carson, who received an honorary degree from UD and spoke at Commencement in 2000, is a gifted physician, a pioneering scientist and a man whose triumphs over his own personal hardships have encouraged countless others.
Carson attributes his escape from the poverty of his youth to the support and love of his mother, and is today the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the American Black Achievement Award.
His autobiography, “Gifted Hands,” chronicles the road from a broken home and poor self-esteem to his life today. His second book, “Think Big,” elaborates on his philosophy of success in life, and his newest book, “The Big Picture,” offers an in-depth look at a professional surgeon’s life, as well as his perspectives on priorities, race, society, success and living out a life of faith in a complex world. He also has edited a medical textbook on craniofacial surgery and authored or coauthored numerous scientific articles.
Carson performs 400-500 surgeries annually, of which more than half are pediatric patients at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. His dual patient care and research interests include developing better treatments for pediatric brain tumors and helping children who are born with achondro-plasia, a congenital deformity resulting in dwarfism.
In addition, he performs hemispherectomies (brain surgery to control intractable seizures) and has developed, along with Hopkins’ plastic surgery division, a strong craniofacial program to allow children with congenital deformities to undergo combined neurosurgical and plastic surgical reconstructions.
In 1987 at the Hopkins Children’s Center, Carson was among the 70-member medical team that separated 7-month-old German conjoined twin boys, who were joined at the back of the head and shared the major cerebral blood drainage system. The 22-hour procedure is believed to be the first time that hypothermia, the deliberate lowering of the body temperature, was coupled with circulatory bypass and deliberate cardiac arrest to spare brain tissue. The boys returned to Germany, where they are living today.
In 1997, he led a South African medical team in a 28-hour operation to separate 11-month-old Zambian twin boys, joined at the top of the head but facing opposite directions. Immediately after surgery, they began breathing on their own, and today doctors believe they have suffered no neurological deficits.
A native of Detroit, he received his undergraduate education at Yale University and his medical degree from the University of Michigan School of Medicine in 1977. He served surgical and neurosurgical residencies and fellowships at Hopkins and also trained at Sir Charles Gairdner in Western Australia. He serves on the boards of directors of Yale and the Kellogg Co.
Master of ceremonies for the event will be meteorologist Glenn "Hurricane" Schwartz of television station NBC 10 in Philadelphia.
Schwartz joined NBC 10 in October 1995 and since has become one of the Delaware Valley's leading television personalities.
May 10, 2002
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