BROADS GIVE $100 MILLION TO RESEARCH MONEY GOES FOR GENOME STUDIES IN MASSACHUSETTS.Byline: Beth Barrett Staff Writer Adding to a legacy of philanthropy, Eli Broad Eli Broad (born June 6, 1933) a native of Detroit, Michigan is a Jewish American billionaire who lives in Los Angeles, California. His last name is pronounced as rhyming with road. Broad is well known for his philanthropy and extensive art collection. and his wife announced Thursday they will make a $100 million gift to launch an institute in Massachusetts dedicated to applying human genome The human genome is the genome of Homo sapiens, which is composed of 24 distinct pairs of chromosomes (22 autosomal + X + Y) with a total of approximately 3 billion DNA base pairs containing an estimated 20,000–25,000 genes. research to the study, treatment and prevention of disease. The research gift, to be made over 10 years, follows last week's pledge by the Broads to give $60 million to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, also known as LACMA, is the official and world-renowned art museum of the County of Los Angeles, California, located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. - the largest such donation in its history - to pay for a new building to showcase contemporary art. Broad, ebullient after a news conference in Cambridge to announce The Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute - with partners Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology, at Cambridge; coeducational; chartered 1861, opened 1865 in Boston, moved 1916. It has long been recognized as an outstanding technological institute and its Sloan School of Management has notable programs in business, , Harvard University Harvard University, mainly at Cambridge, Mass., including Harvard College, the oldest American college. Harvard College Harvard College, originally for men, was founded in 1636 with a grant from the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. and the Whitehead Institute - said in an interview that he'd like to be remembered as someone who ``gave something back, who made a difference, and left this place a little better than when I found it.'' Broad, who acquired his wealth by starting two Fortune 500 companies, KB Home Corp. and SunAmerica, said he was inspired in October 2001 by the work being done to decode the human genome and by one of its principal leaders, Eric S. Lander, who will direct the new institute. ``I went into this massive lab with robotics and computers going 24 hours a day. It was a Saturday afternoon, and these young scientists practically had to be dragged home for the night, they were so excited about what they were doing,'' Broad said. ``The dream I have for this is that all they've learned in decoding the genome can be taken to clinical applications to find the cause of major diseases, how to prevent them and how to treat them.'' Broad said other institutions throughout the country were considered, including a couple in California, but ``in this case, science was more important than geography.'' ``Los Angeles wins any ties. I live here and I love the city,'' he said, noting he has established the Broad Center for the Biological Sciences at the California Institute of Technology California Institute of Technology, at Pasadena, Calif.; originally for men, became coeducational in 1970; founded 1891 as Throop Polytechnic Institute; called Throop College of Technology, 1913–20. and the Edythe and Eli Broad Art Center at the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. . The LACMA LACMA Los Angeles County Museum of Art LACMA Los Angeles County Medical Association LACMA Latin American and Caribbean Movers Association board met Wednesday and the Broads' pledge that includes loans of their extensive art collection received ``a very favorable'' reception, a museum spokesperson said. Broad, who recently turned 70 and has stepped down from the helm of the companies, said he wants to be able to direct how his money is donated. ``Someone said, `He who gives while he lives, also knows where it goes.''' Beth Barrett, (818) 713-3731 beth.barrett(at)dailynews.com |
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