Innovator and Entrepreneur: Tan

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1 Your web browser (Safari 7) is out of date. For more security, comfort and ProfileArticle the best experience on this site: Update your browser Ignore Innovator and Entrepreneur: Tan Le Real-world geography. Explore cool careers. For the complete profile with media resources, visit: By Ryan Schleeter Wednesday, November 20, 2013 Tan Le, a 2013 National Geographic Emerging Explorer, is an innovator and entrepreneur revolutionizing the field of brain science with her company, Emotiv Lifesciences. Tan s mission entails giving everyday citizens the tools to better understand how their own brains function. Her work is dramatically accelerating the pace of brain research. Her products use electroencephalography (EEG) technology to create a uniquely user-friendly method of collecting and sharing brain data. EARLY WORK Tan began her career as a lawyer. Through that job, she was inspired to switch gears and get into entrepreneurship. What s really transforming our world today is technology. Technology is driving a lot of innovation and driving what s happening in everyday lives. As a lawyer, I was facilitating and sitting on the sidelines helping entrepreneurs and other creative people undertake their ventures. I wanted to be a part of it too. The second shift in Tan s career came roughly five years after the founding of her 1 of 6

2 first company, when she became unhappy thinking about reinventing [herself] every three to five years. That s when the intrigue of the brain and the opportunities to expand the norms of brain research caught her attention and kept it. The brain slowly became more and more of a fixture. This was something that I was totally fascinated by.... I saw opportunities to disrupt this space by really innovating around a core technology. The dream was to try to create a technological platform that would make it much more accessible for anybody who is interested in the brain to participate. MOST EXCITING PART OF YOUR WORK Tan says she and her colleagues at Emotiv Lifesciences are simply the creators of the technology. The beauty, she emphasizes, is in the applications. We ve been really amazed by how the technology has been used.... People have looked into driving a car with your thought, using a smartphone via thought, new methods of patient rehabilitation, children s art, and so many different things. We re the people who created the technology platform, but not the applications. It s developers and researchers who have taken this technology platform and breathed life into it. MOST DEMANDING PART OF YOUR WORK Brain research is traditionally dominated by a small number of experts, with decades of education and experience required to break into the field. For Tan, convincing those around her to reframe their approach to understanding and researching the brain was no small task. There s something that s very limiting when you become an insider or an expert, because you become settled and you come to expect certain things. People say, It s always been done that way. But let s think again why does it have to be this way? We fall into autopilot even when we re trying our hardest not to fall into this trap. Since moving past this initial hurdle and assembling her multidisciplinary team of 2 of 6

3 misfits, Tan s challenges have taken on a much more technical nature, tied to the mechanical and engineering intricacies of Emotiv s different products. HOW DO YOU DEFINE GEOGRAPHY? It s really any uncharted territory. If you think of geography as territory, then what we re trying to do with geography is explore all of the uncharted territory. Whether it s the brain or other fields where we don t have all the knowledge. GEO-CONNECTION If the root of geography and exploration is the desire to better understand the unknown, the brain may indeed be the ultimate challenge for explorers like Tan. We know less about the brain than we do about any other system in the human body. It s a challenging problem, especially because the brain is a system that s very dynamic. We understand now that the brain has neuroplasticity, which means that the brain doesn t stop learning once the critical period closes. It remains open for the bulk of our mature adult lives. That means that it s constantly evolving in response to the input you re providing it. SO, YOU WANT TO BE AN... INNOVATOR AND ENTREPRENEUR Innovation, Tan says, is best understood by looking at the common forces moving society and technology forward. The best way to predict the future is to invent it, but short of that, the next best thing is to look at people s collective passions, because that s really what s driving the world today. Tan cites coding the suite of languages computer systems use to communicate as an essential tool for tapping these collective passions. If I had the chance again, I would definitely learn to code. It s a very useful language to have under your belt; I consider it a communication tool.... It equips you with a set of tools that you can apply to anything. 3 of 6

4 GET INVOLVED Those interested in using Emotiv s products to learn more about their own brain can find out about the latest product, the Emotiv Insight, at Once you are able to collect your own brain data, you can begin to track things like your progress while learning a new language, personal risk for neurological conditions like dementia or Alzheimer's disease, and brain activity while dreaming. Vocabulary Term Part of Speech Definition accessible adjective relatively easy to approach, use, or obtain. Alzheimer's brain disease characterized by confusion, disease disorientation, and memory failure. amaze verb to greatly surprise or astonish. coding study and process of writing and operating texts adjective, (codes) in programming language. Also called computer programming. colleague a coworker or partner. communicate verb to exchange knowledge, thoughts, or feelings. computer device designed to access data, perform prescribed tasks at high speed, and display the results. data plural (singular: datum) information collected during a scientific study. deterioration of brain functions such as memory, dementia concentration, and judgement, often accompanied by emotional and psychological impairments. dominate verb to overpower or control. dynamic adjective always changing or in motion. EEG adjective, (electroencephalograph) instrument for measuring and recording the electric activity of the brain. an adventurer, scientist, innovator, or storyteller Emerging recognized by National Geographic for their visionary Explorer work while still early in their careers. 4 of 6

5 Term Part of Speech Definition emphasize verb to stress or place importance on. engineering the art and science of building, maintaining, moving, and demolishing structures. entrepreneur person who starts and manages a business. facilitate verb to help or make easier. fascinate verb to cause an interest in. geography study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. initial adjective first. innovate verb to invent or introduce something new. intrigue verb to inspire interest or curiosity. invent verb to create. mature adjective adult member of a species who is able to reproduce. multidisciplinaryadjective involving more than one field of knowledge or expertise. neuroplasticity ability of the brain and nervous system to change and form new connections. patient person who is undergoing medical care. platform basic computer technology, including both hardware and software, sometimes geared to a specific purpose or application. rehabilitation process of restoring a subject to better health, abilities, or functionalities. research scientific observations and investigation into a subject, usually following the scientific method: observation, hypothesis, prediction, experimentation, analysis, and conclusion. revolutionize verb to completely change a process or way of doing something. smartphone mobile telephone with additional features, such as a web browser or music playing device. technology territory the science of using tools and complex machines to make human life easier or more profitable. land an animal, human, or government protects from intruders. 5 of 6

6 Part of Term Definition Speech unexplored or unknown, especially a region not shown uncharted adjective on a map. venture risky undertaking, especially a business investment. Articles & Profiles National Geographic Explorers: Tan Le Innovator and Entrepreneur Video TED Talks: Topic Brain Websites Emotiv Lifesciences National Geographic Society. All rights reserved. 6 of 6