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Host: Prof. Berry Pinshow
​Current Position: Chief Scientific Officer, Sable Systems International, USA
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I am currently working as the Chief Scientific Officer for Sable Systems International in Las Vegas, Nevada, a company that develops gas analysis equipment that scientists use to measure the metabolic rates of animals and humans. I received my Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas in 2008. Thereafter, I was recruited by Professor Berry Pinshow and granted a prestigious Blaustein Postdoctoral Fellowship to work in his Physiological Ecology Laboratory at the Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR; 2008-2010). This two-year fellowship provided countless opportunities for scientific, professional, and personal development. Prof. Pinshow's laboratory allowed me to gain critical grant writing experience, hone problem-solving skills, refine personnel management skills, and learn numerous new field and laboratory techniques. Some of these techniques, namely ¹³C-breath testing, created a foundation of scientific inquiry that I still actively pursue. After two years at the BIDR, I accepted a faculty position at St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas and was awarded tenure four years later. After eight years as a professor, I transitioned to the private sector, but remain active in scientific research. From a professional perspective, the opportunity to live in Israel allowed me to visit nearby research facilities and attend new scientific conferences throughout the region that would have otherwise been impossible. In doing this, I was able to expand my scientific network to include several European and Israeli scientists, many of whom are still my collaborators. From a personal perspective, taking a two-year hiatus from the routine American lifestyle provided opportunities to learn about and appreciate other cultures, while developing enduring friendships with many of the other international members of the BIDR.