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220 THE NAI PROFILE

and nanotechnology. As the author of over 1350 years between your first publication on angiogenesis
articles; the inventor on over 1,100 U.S. and foreign and the approval of the first cancer drug based on
patents; and the mastermind behind over 30 compa- your work?
nies, Langer’s innovation output calls for an adjective Langer: I would say that [the idea of grit as a key
beyond prolific. As if his own work weren’t impressive to success] is true. I think that’s exactly right what
enough, his accolades are legion. He is the recipient of she said. And, as to what kind of traits [allowed me
over 220 prestigious awards, including the National to persevere], I guess that would be stubbornness, a
Medal of Science, the National Medal of Technology strong belief in wanting to do good for the world, and
and Innovation, the Charles Stark Draper Prize, the perseverance, things like that. That’s a very good ques-
Millennium Prize, the Kyoto Prize, and the Queen tion; people have asked that before, and I don’t really
Elizabeth Prize for Engineering. He is also one of the know 100%. But, I think it’s those kinds of things.
select group who has been elected to the U.S. National
Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine and T&I: Where does that strong core of self-belief come
elected a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, from?
the American Association for the Advancement of Langer: Well, I don’t know if it’s a strong core of
Science, and the American Academy of Arts and self-belief. I mean there are lots of times that I’ve
Sciences. had a lot of doubts. You know, I think most things
Langer’s work is inveterately transdisciplinary, come from your family. I mean my mom and dad.
leveraging the fundamentals of materials science My mom was the type of person who was very nice
to create advanced biotechnological products and and helped people, and my dad got me interested
applications. A large part of that work has centered in more intellectual stuff, like he’d play math games
on drug delivery systems, where Langer has engi- with me. They got me these Gilbert chemistry sets
neered polymers that allow drugs to be delivered at and gifts like that.
controlled rates for specific and often prolonged time
spans. These advances offer the potential for better T&I: When you consider that time gap from your and
treatment of disease, advances in gene therapy, and Judah Folkman’s discovery of the first angiogenesis
improved vaccines among other areas. In addition, inhibitor (1976) to the first angiogenesis inhibitor
Langer’s lab has been active in the field of artificial being approved by the FDA (2004), 28 years is a long
tissue and organs, investigating the use of polymers time.
for improved tissue engineering. Langer: Well, it is, but medicine takes a long time.
Dr. Langer graciously agreed to an interview with There have been longer times for people to go from
T&I, discussing his most recent work and weighing discovery to FDA approval, but that’s a long time, I
in on various topics, including the symbiotic relation- agree.
ship between universities and companies in the tech T&I: You read Outliers, a book analyzing exceptional
transfer arena, the importance of teaching students to
ask good questions as well as give good answers, and performers by Malcolm Gladwell. Do you see yourself
as an outlier?
the ongoing motivation that impels him to excellence.
Langer: Probably I am in different ways. I think that’s
INTERVIEW probably right. All of these people you are talking to
T&I: In her recent book Grit, Angela Duckworth, a [NAI Fellows] are outliers in different ways.
psychology professor at U Penn, suggests that “grit”—a T&I: You have been and remain a leader in invention
combination of resilience to failure and sustained and translational technology and a champion for
passion for your core interests—is key to success. companies and the role they play in getting technol-
To what extent do you think this is true in your case, ogy to consumers. As someone who was involved in
especially given the early years of your career when academic start-ups before they were in vogue, what
your scientific work was not well received? What do you see as being the ideal relationship between
kind of traits allowed you to persevere during the 28 universities and start-up companies? What roles do