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By Gabrielle Maxey
A distinguished professor of biomedical engineering and chemistry received the 2010
Willard R. Sparks Eminent Faculty Award at the University of Memphis. Dr. Ernö Lindner
was awarded the $20,000 honor during the University’s annual Faculty Convocation in
April at the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law downtown. The award recognizes exceptional
and sustained contributions to scholarlycreative achievement, teaching and service,
and for bringing recognition to the University. A recipient must have been employed
at the University for at least five years to be considered for the award.
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Faculty Convocation had a Scottish flair with music Professor Bruce Erskine playing
the bagpipes during the processional down Main Street. Dr. Daniel Poje is at right.
(Photo by Lindsey Lissau)
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Lindner is the R. Eugene Smith Professor of Biomedical Engineering in the Herff College
of Engineering. A native of Hungary, he has assembled an outstanding laboratory research
group, and has compiled a sustained record of achievements in the field of chemical
sensors and biomedical engineering.
Lindner is working on development of a simple device for the early diagnosis of heart
attacks, one of the most challenging situations faced by emergency physicians. The
research is supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health. In collaboration
with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, he continues work on an innovative
feedback-controlled device for precision dosing of propofol, a potent intravenous
anesthetic drug. Lindner has research partners across the University, the city (Le
Bonheur Children’s Medical Center, UTHSC), the nation (Woods Hole Marine Biology Laboratory,
Oak Ridge National Laboratory) and the globe (Hungary, Switzerland, Japan and Finland).
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Lindner, at right, was presented the Eminent Faculty Award during Faculty Convocation
in April.
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“Ernö is a model of the ideal academic,” said Dr. Eugene Eckstein, chair of biomedical
engineering. “He has often taken on committee work, whether that is composing questions
and grading the Level A exam that our doctoral students must pass, representing the
department in the Faculty Senate, or developing the spring seminar series for the
biomedical engineering program. Every year he sounds out faculty members and friends
to find outstanding speakers. We hear excellent speakers who come from the fields
of chemistry, physics, pathology and mechanical and electrical engineering.”
His approach to teaching leaves a great impact on his students. They graduate with
much more than a degree: they go on to become first-class engineers and scientists
with unlimited futures in industry and academia. Last year three of his students earned
PhDs and were able to choose from several prestigious job offers. Two students working
with Lindner in National Science Foundation-supported REU programs (Research Experiences
for Undergraduates) have been recognized as the best in their group for nanomaterials
and biomaterials.
Due in part to the research generated by students from his laboratory, Lindner’s publications
peaked in 2009. Twelve of his papers were published or accepted for publication. His
scholarly contributions were cited 355 times.
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