The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) has announced the appointment of four new members to its Advisory Council. The Council serves as the principal advisory body to NIBIB, a component of the National Institutes of Health within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The Council, which meets three times a year, provides recommendations on the conduct and support of biomedical imaging and bioengineering research and research training.

The new Advisory Council members are:

Rebecca Mary Bergman, B.S., is Vice President of Science and Technology at Medtronic, Inc. Ms. Bergman holds a B.S. degree in chemistry from Princeton University, and has completed graduate studies in chemical engineering and materials science at the University of Minnesota. She has served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Minnesota where she has taught courses in biomedical engineering. Since joining Medtronic, Ms. Bergman has been a leader in the advancement of biologically oriented sciences in the company. She oversees Medtronic’s Materials and Biosciences Center, the Technical Knowledge Center, innovation programs and other corporate technology initiatives. Previously, Ms. Bergman held scientific and research and development management positions of increasing responsibility within Medtronic. She has received several of the company’s highest honors, including membership in the Bakken Society, an honorary society for Medtronic’s most distinguished scientific and technical contributors.


Richard Lorne Ehman, M.D., is a member of the Mayo Clinic Board of Governors and is Professor of Radiology at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. Dr. Ehman has a medical degree from the University of Saskatchewan, and did fellowships at the University of California, San Francisco, and at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Ehman, who holds more than 20 patents, is known for a number of MRI inventions which have made dramatic improvements in the technology and have become technique mainstays adopted throughout the industry. This includes methods for eliminating flow and motion related image artifact, synchronizing the scan to an individual person’s respiration pattern, and measurement of the mechanical properties of tissue. Dr. Ehman’s current research is on nuclear magnetic resonance phenomena, including investigation of new methods for high resolution magnetic resonance imaging of moving structures, techniques of ultrafast MR imaging, and methods for noninvasive assessment of the vascular system. Dr. Ehman was awarded the Gold Medal of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) in 1995 for his research contributions and was elected President of the society in 2002. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering and the American College of Radiology. He served as a member of the Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Study Section of the NIH from 1995-99 and returned to serve as Chair of that study section from 2002-2004.

More Voices