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In This Issue:
Marco Ramoni, PhD, associate director of Bioinformatics for PCPGM
BWH mourns the loss of Marco Ramoni, PhD, an internationally known computer scientist and Baysian theorist, whose colleagues remember his love for life. He passed away suddenly on June 8 at age 47.
Dr. Ramoni was the associate director of Bioinformatics in the Partners Center for Personalized Genetic Medicine (PCPGM), a senior member of the Children’s Hospital Boston Informatics Program and an associate professor of Pediatrics and Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
“One thing Marco taught all of us was to love life, live in the moment, and, for everything we do, do it to the fullest extent possible,” said Scott Weiss, MD, director of the Partners Center for Personalized Genetic Medicine, who was a colleague and friend to Dr. Ramoni for eight years. “It is a powerful legacy we should all remember every day going forward.”
Born in Milan, Italy, Dr. Ramoni grew up in Cremona and lived in Switzerland, Canada and England before coming to Boston. His contributions to science ranged from new understanding of the genetic mechanisms of stroke and asthma to developing novel methodologies.
Dr. Ramoni published more than 68 articles in top ranking journals and was honored by several national societies, including the Society for Artificial Intelligence. He also led multiple NIH–funded predictive medicine projects at Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.
“He was a joy to work with and an incredibly generous person who was kind to his friends and collaborators,” said Weiss. “He was also spontaneous and liked to have fun and throw a party. And he always wanted to go to Starbucks for an espresso.”
Dr. Ramoni is survived by his wife, Rachel Ramoni, who works at Harvard Medical School. “Rachel was the most important person in his life,” said Weiss. “Their love for each other held within it the possibility for a better self and a better world.”
In his free time, Dr. Ramoni learned to play the saxophone and was passionate about music.
A memorial service was held at the Andover Chapel at Harvard Divinity School, and family, friends and colleagues joined together at a reception at Harvard Medical School’s Countway Library afterward to share memories of Dr. Ramoni.