Dr. Geoffrey Ling, a neurologist and retired U.S. Army colonel, has joined the Center for BrainHealth at The University of Texas at Dallas to spearhead the center’s latest initiative — to double human brain performance in the next 10 years.
Dr. Geoffrey Ling (left) is part of the BrainHealth 2027 leadership team with Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman and Dr. Ian Robertson.
“Discoveries to advance brain health and performance, as well as cure neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, pale in comparison to those of heart health and cancer treatment,” Ling said. “While the human lifespan has doubled over the last century, the brain’s functional lifespan has not.”
As co-director of BrainHealth 2027, Ling will provide medical direction related to the health and societal impacts of new brain research. He will serve as a liaison between the medical and scientific communities to expedite the translation of metrics, knowledge, protocols and technologies into clinical practice.
Ling will oversee the research plan for elucidating risk factors contributing to declining brain health, identifying best practices for optimizing brain health, developing technologies that facilitate good brain health and uncovering the underlying mechanisms of neuroplasticity. He also will play a major role in fundraising, expanding partnerships with academic and medical institutions and insurance companies, and increasing public awareness of the initiative.
“Dr. Ling brings profound enthusiasm, support and clinical skills to the Center for BrainHealth. We welcome him to this role,” said Dr. Sandra Bond Chapman, founder and chief director of the center and Dee Wyly Distinguished University Chair. “Traditional brain health is centered on pharmaceutical research. Our new initiative will provide a multidisciplinary approach for building brain and cognitive capacity through activities based on scientific research. Dr. Ling’s extensive expertise will be invaluable as we move forward.”
“I believe the Center for BrainHealth research efforts will result in quantitative improvements for preventing cognitive decline, as well as a new understanding of brain mechanics and plasticity, and I am pleased to be part of this groundbreaking effort.”
Dr. Geoffrey Ling, co-director
of BrainHealth 2027 at the Center for BrainHealth
Ling will be part of a four-person leadership team that includes Chapman and Dr. Ian Robertson, T. Boone Pickens Distinguished Scientist at the Center for BrainHealth. Former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, who has served as CEO of Kaplan Inc., the global educational services company, is also on the team.
“I believe the Center for BrainHealth research efforts will result in quantitative improvements for preventing cognitive decline, as well as a new understanding of brain mechanics and plasticity, and I am pleased to be part of this groundbreaking effort,” Ling said.
Ling’s accomplishments include assisting with the organization and launch of President Barack Obama’s BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative. He also headed the U.S. Department of Defense research team that pioneered the first brain-controlled artificial limb for amputees. Ling holds appointments at Johns Hopkins University and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, and is the acting vice chair for research at Inova, a not-for-profit health care system based in Virginia.