Professor Tom Solomon
Professor Tom Solomon studied medicine at Oxford, did a PhD in Vietnam and postgraduate virology in the United States, before training as a neurologist.
He is Director of the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Infection and Global Health, and Professor of Neurology at the Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust. He studies emerging viral infections, particularly those that affect the brain, has published more than 200 scientific papers, and was
awarded the Royal College of Physicians Triennial Moxon medal in 2014.
His science communication work includes a highly acclaimed TEDx talk, many radio and television appearances, a Guinness World Record for creating the “World’s Biggest Brain”, and another for running the fastest marathon dressed as a doctor.
He tweets @RunningMadProf
Why Running Mad Professor?
The Running Mad Professor
As the Running Mad Professor, Tom ran the 2010 London Marathon, raising awareness of encephalitis; this is inflammation and swelling of the brain, often caused by a virus. This video of his training regime has had more than 20,000 hits, and he won a Guinness World Record for the fastest marathon dressed as a doctor, raising £21,000 for the Encephalitis Society.
Interview with Jonathon Edwards
Tom was interviewed for BBC 1 on the start-line just before the London marathon by the Olympic Gold Medalist, Jonathon Edwards
The World's Biggest Brain
To increase awareness of encephalitis, and other brain infections, for World Encephalitis Day 2014, I created the World’s Biggest Brain, made up of 687 people, which won a Guinness World Record. This included a Performance Art Project which explored brain function and injury caused by encephalitis.