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Dr Finkel is an engineer, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He received his Bachelor of Engineering in 1976 and Doctorate in Electrical Engineering from Monash University in 1981, following which he served for two years as a neuroscience research fellow at the John Curtin School of Medical Research, located at the Australian National University.
In 1983, Dr Finkel founded the Californian Company, Axon Instruments, to commercially produce amplifiers that measured nerve activity in mammalian neurons with one electrode. His science and technology based company lead the world in the design of equipment used for cellular research and drug discovery. In March 2000 Axon successfully listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. In 2004 it was acquired by the US firm Molecular Devices Corporation.
Since Axon, Dr Finkel has contributed significantly to Australian scientific endeavour and communications. He co-founded COSMOS and G magazines to promote science awareness and sustainable lifestyles to the general public. He led the establishment of the Australian Course in Advanced Neuroscience and various secondary school science teaching initiatives that add relevance, excitement and inquiry to science based learning.
In 2005, Dr Finkel was appointed to the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering Clunies Ross foundation Board of Governors and in 2006 he was elected a Fellow of the Academy. Dr Finkel serves as chairman of the National Research Centre for the Prevention of Child Abuse at Monash University and he is a director of the Florey Neuroscience Institutes. He remains passionate about Australian science and education.
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