Main description:

As a young man, Graeme Clark read about Louis Pasteur, Marie Curie and other great scientists, little knowing that one day he would join their ranks. After watching his father struggle with hearing problems, Graeme knew he wanted to find a solution to deafness.

Graeme became a surgeon, and his quiet persistence and methodical approach yielded results that fulfilled his childhood dream. Around the world, hundreds of thousands of people have now received the gift of hearing from the cochlear implant he developed. The first major medical 'bionic' implant technology, it has transformed the everyday lives of people who are profoundly deaf. Throughout his career, his belief that the impossible could be achieved, his strong family support and his Christian faith have sustained him through many obstacles, and helped him overcome resistance to his ideas from people who doubted them.

This new biography tells the inspiring story of Graeme's life, and the triumphs and the setbacks behind the invention of the bionic ear.

Contents:

Foreword by Li CunxinIntroduction: An (extra)ordinary couple1 Tears of joy2 Childhood in Camden3 'When I grow up, I'm going to fix ears'4 Boarding school in Sydney5 Brains, bones and exams6 Student Christian Movement7 Margaret8 UK studies9 Ship's surgeon and Cairo castaway10 Resettling in Australia11 Australia's youngest professor of medicine12 Reginald Ansett and the Channel 10 telethons13 Imagining the impossible14 'That clown, Clark'15 Assembling the team16 The gold box17 Life at Eltham and Kiama18 Study leave in England 1975-7619 A day at the beach20 The race to code speech21 1 August 1978: The birth of bionics22 More surgeries and the first failures23 The faith of a scientist24 Federal funding at last25 The bionic ear hits the market26 Implants for children27 Even children born deaf shall hear28 The signing Deaf community29 The Bionic Ear Institute and the future of bionics30 Success and sadness at millennium's turn31 'Retirement'Epilogue: 'Professor Clark, that kiss belongs to you!'Appendix 1: Recognitions and awardsAppendix 2: Scientific innovationsAppendix 3: Selected publicationsAcknowledgementsNotesIndex