It’s all about innovation as BWH kicks off voting for its second annual BRIght Futures Prize competition. The BWH Biomedical Research Institute (BRI) will award one of three finalists a $100,000 philanthropic prize to support innovative research that is both compelling and promising. The competition is intended to generate excitement and motivation within the research community, while heightening the visibility of BWH research worldwide. The prize will support researchers as they work to answer provocative questions or solve grand problems.

The three finalists were selected through a rigorous two-step peer review process, and the winner will be determined by public voting. BWH faculty, staff and the public are encouraged to vote for their favorite research project by visiting bwhresearchday.partners.org. Polls opened Sept. 23 and will remain open until Nov. 21. The winner will be announced during closing ceremonies at BWH Research Day on Nov. 21. To vote, consider using the following browsers: Firefox, Safari or Chrome, or use a mobile device (if problems arise with using Internet Explorer).

Read the following Q&As, and be sure to view the finalists’ videos. Then, don’t forget to cast your vote!

Taking Control of Epilepsy
Utkan Demirci, PhD, Division of Biomedical Engineering

Power to the Patient
Daniel Solomon, MD, MPH, Division of Rheumatology
Joel Weissman, PhD, Center for Surgery and Public Health

Stuck on You
Bohdan Pomahac, MD, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Jeffrey M. Karp, PhD, Division of Biomedical Engineering