“For his invention and development of innovative biomaterials for controlled drug release and tissue regeneration that have significantly improved human health.” Professor Robert Langer Institute Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Harvard-MIT Division of Health Science and Technology, Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, Massachusetts, USA Born August 1948 in Albany, New York, USA

The 2008 Millennium Technology Prize was presented to Professor Robert Langer today in Helsinki for developing innovative biomaterials for controlled drug release. The world’s largest technology prize is awarded by Technology Academy Finland for a technological innovation that significantly improves quality of human life and promotes sustainable development. President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen handed Professor Langer the prize of EUR 800,000 and ”Peak”, the prize trophy, at the Grand Award Ceremony on Wednesday afternoon.

The finalists for the 2008 Millennium Technology Prize have been announced by the Technology Academy Finland. Those competing for the world’s largest technology prize are: Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys Professor, Department of Genetics, University of Leicester, UK “For his invention of DNA fingerprinting used in identification of criminal suspects and in paternity and immigration disputes. No other development in modern genetics has had such a profound impact worldwide on the lives of many millions of people.” Professor Robert Langer Institute Professor, MIT, Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, USA “For his inventions and development of innovative biomaterials for controlled drug release and tissue regeneration that have saved and improved the lives of millions of people.” Dr. Andrew J. Viterbi President, Viterbi Group LLC, Professor Emeritus, University of Southern California, USA “For the invention of the Viterbi algorithm, the key building element in modern wireless and digital communications systems, touching lives of people everywhere.” Professor Emmanuel Desurvire Director, Physics Research Group, Thales Corporate Research & Technology, France Dr.Randy Giles Director, Optical Networks, Bell Laboratories, Alcatel-Lucent, New Jersey, USA Professor David N. Payne Director, Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton, UK “For their outstanding contributions to telecommunications through the invention of the erbium-doped fibre amplifier (EDFA) which made possible the global high-capacity optical fibre network, serving as a backbone of the global information superhighway.”

“For the invention of the Viterbi algorithm, the key building element in modern wireless and digital communications systems, touching the lives of people everywhere."

“For his invention of DNA fingerprinting, used in the identification of criminal suspects and in paternity and immigration disputes, making him one of the most significant figures in modern genetics.”