Paul W. K. Rothemund

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Paul W.K. Rothemund is a senior research fellow at the Computation and Neural Systems department at Caltech.^[1] He has become known in the fields of DNA nanotechnology and synthetic biology for his pioneering work with DNA origami. Rothemund is a 2007 recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship.

Rothemund graduated from Laconia High School in 1990. He was the team captain of the championship Laconia team for the television quiz show Granite State Challenge. After graduating, Rothemund studied as an undergraduate at Caltech from 1990-1994, where he was a resident of Ricketts House. He lived in the same room for all four years of his undergraduate career; since his graduation this room has been renamed "Roto" in honor of his freshman nickname, Roto-Rooter, which was a play on his last name.

As a research fellow at Caltech, Rothemund has developed a technique to manipulate and fold strands of DNA known as DNA Origami. Eventually, Rothemund hopes this technology could be used to create microscopic organisms with multiple purposes. The DNA created would be able to devour certain pollutents in the air, or be able to determine which cells in a person's body are cancerous and destroy them before the cancer spreads. He is currently working on a large-scale sculpture of his DNA Origami, and expects to exhibit these sculptures at the Museum of Modern Art in New York from February 24 to May 12, 2008.