Heidi Nakajima

Heidi Nakajima and her husband and partner, David Perreault, are heads of house for Simmons Hall. Heidi is associate professor in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Harvard Medical School and David is the Joseph F. and Nancy P. Keithley Professor at MIT's Department Electrical Engineering & Computer Science.

Hideko Heidi Nakajima was christened “Heidi” by friends when she moved to Indiana from Japan as a teenager. She received her MD and PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Boston University. Her clinical training included general surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital and otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Harvard Medical School, where she has remained. In her lab at Eaton-Peabody Laboratories at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Heidi and her team study human auditory mechanics. They develop implantable prosthetic technologies, diagnostic methods, and new treatments for middle- and inner-ear pathologies. Heidi also experiments in the kitchen, learning the intricacies of preparing dishes from various ethnic cuisines. She enjoys sharing and discussing culinary creations with friends.

Kaito, their Portuguese water dog, has become a familiar sight to students who visit David’s office. Kaito has been known to attend classes (though he often falls asleep) and is a master at catching Frisbees in Killian Court.

Connect with Heidi via email at hhn@mit.edu.