Dr. Scott Tanner

50th Alumni Profiles
B.Sc. '76, PhD '80 - Dr. Scott Tanner

Research Scientist, Professor & Entrepreneur. Now retired.
Career History Since Graduation Following a BSc ('76) and PhD ('80) at York, Scott spent 25 years at Sciex Inc. (subsequently MDS Sciex) in Toronto investigating and developing mass spectrometer instrumentation, eventually becoming Principal Scientist. In 2005 Scott took a faculty position at the University of Toronto (3 years in Biomedical Engineering, then 5 years in Chemistry), where he led a team developing a transformational analytical technology for single cell analysis. In part overlapping with those university years, Scott led the development of a company, DVS Sciences, that further developed that technology and saw its commercial distribution around the world. Scott retired in 2015, following the merger of DVS Sciences with Fluidigm. He now boasts an Adjunct Professorship in Chemistry at York, and sits on the boards of Ontario Genomics and Life Sciences Ontario.
Most Memorable York University Experience The most lasting and important outcome from my York experience was, several years after graduating, re-acquainting Linda Henshaw (Kinesiology '77) who became my wife in 1984 - and is still my stalwart support.
The most memorable times during my York days were definitely in the gymnastics training facility: after all, we pretty much lived there! 4 CIAU competitions (3 of which York won) vie for supremacy of memorable merit. Perhaps the most important competition was the 1975 Nationals at Laval, which served as one of the Olympic trials - and a "stuck" highbar dismount that pretty much ended my gymnastics career.
York University Anecdote or Highlight While in grad school, we held a clandestine "grapefruit cannon" competition. The winner "almost" cleared Stong College from the Petrie Bldg ground floor landing...
My highlight(s) from York were the outstanding people I lived and worked with. The gymnastics team was populated with a talented and brilliant (and fun!) group of athletes, led by the inestimable Tom Zivic. The highlights in grad school were my supervisors, Diethard Bohme and John Goodings, the CRESS faculty, and my colleagues in "don-ship" at Stong College Residence.
Current Position Retired, former CEO and CTO (DVS Sciences), CTO (Fluidigm), Professor (UofT), Principal Scientist (MDS Sciex)
Highlight(s) of Professional Career Developed a string of very successful mass spectrometry-based instruments. These are (were) used for measuring air, ground and water pollutants, including dioxins. Was one of the most prominent developers of atomic mass spectrometry instruments, used for determining the atomic composition of matter, including environmental, geophysical and biomedical applications. Most recently, and perhaps most famously, invented and developed the technology of Mass Cytometry, which is poised to transform the way that biologists investigate cellular processes and could revolutionize our understanding of the states of disease and health.
Community Involvements/Contributions (Local to International) Currently, board member for Ontario Genomics and Life Sciences Ontario. Through these, I offer to mentor early-stage technology entrepreneurs.
Honours and Awards UofT Inventor of the year (2011); ThermoFisher Spectroscopy Award (2011); W.A.E. McBryde medal (2003); Elsevier Award SAB (2002); Manning Innovation Award of Distinction (2001).
Fellow, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
Fellow, Royal Society of Chemistry (UK)
73 refereed publications; 4 books edited; 19 patents (US, with related filings elsewhere); probably a hundred invited and keynote lectures around the world