The Dr. Kitty Fronek and Dr. Arnost Fronek Engineering and Medicine Endowed lectureship was established to honor the memory and contributions of Dr. Kitty Fronek and Dr. Arnost Fronek, who were scientists, clinicians, teachers, and inspirational human beings. Their scientific spirit was manifested by their lifelong curiosity, creativity and varied intellectual pursuits. This, coupled with their courage, tenacity, resilience, kindness, and dedication to teaching future generations, allowed them to make significant contributions in science and medicine and to create a lasting influence on so many people who knew them. Recruited by Dr. Benjamin Zweifach in 1968, they joined the newly formed Bioengineering group at UC San Diego’s Department of Applied Mechanics and Engineering Science (AMES), which is a precursor of today’s Bioengineering Department. As physician-scientists with expertise in experimental cardiovascular research, their appointments fused research in vascular physiology with microcirculation and biomechanics. As each other’s favorite scientific collaborator, they spent decades investigating vascular disorders from numerous creative angles. Their curiosity and excitement with the scientific discovery process never wavered throughout their long and productive careers.
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