Leon Sanders III: Pursuing His Passions for Japanese Culture and Scientific Research

As a Pitt undergraduate, Leon Sanders III has had the opportunity to immerse himself in two of his passions, Japanese culture and scientific research. Sanders, who recently returned from studying in Tokyo, coauthored a scientific paper titled “Neural Network for Automated System to Diagnose Blood Clots,” which he presented during the International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Applications in Innsbruck, Austria, in February. He is pictured with the conference’s keynote speaker, Dieter Fensel, director of Austria’s Digital Enterprise Research Institute.

Sanders’ research focused on the development of a device to diagnose one of the 10 most life-threatening blood clot disorders. The device also provides diagnostic techniques to target a specific disorder, information a person can take to a doctor’s office for verification. Sanders will graduate from Pitt today with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Japanese and a certificate in Asian studies. He plans to pursue a master’s degree in biology and a Ph.D. degree in the study of viruses, with his primary focus on HIV/AIDS and Ebola research.