An improbable journey: Creativity helped me make the transition from art to curing malaria

I was recently awarded the Alice and C. C. Wang Award in Molecular Parasitology for my contributions to antimalarial drug development, including laying the groundbreaking work that has led to two new molecular methods for curing malaria. This award means a great deal to me because I have spent much of my scientific career feeling like an imposter-one with the wrong sort of background and poor credentials. I am grateful for the recognition, and I am beginning to recognize that having an atypical background can be an advantage because it gives you a different perspective on a challenge. More generally, diversity in educational and cultural backgrounds is important because it can stimulate new ways of thinking and discovery.