Michael Merzenich, PhD, Neuroscientist and Cochlear Implant Pioneer

Michael Merzenich, PhD, Neuroscientist and cochlear implant pioneer shares with Lisa Price advances made in correcting the hearing of someone that has never heard anything. What if scientists could connect an electronic device directly to the nervous system and give someone access to sound? That breakthrough is the cochlear implant and more than 1 million people worldwide now use the technology to hear and engage in spoken communication. The five scientists who helped make that possible are being honored with the 2026 Richard N. Merkin Prize in Biomedical Technology at the ceremony being held at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.