Glacier walking in Svínafellsjökull, Iceland
Anna Wexler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, where she studies ethical, legal, and social issues surrounding emerging technology. In particular, she is interested in do-it-yourself medicine, citizen science, and direct-to-consumer neurotechnology. She received her Ph.D. in 2017 from the HASTS (History, Anthropology, Science, Technology & Society) Program at MIT, where her dissertation centered on the DIY brain stimulation movement. She was a 2015-2016 visiting scholar at the Center for Neuroscience and Society at the University of Pennsylvania. In 2007, Anna graduated from MIT with two Bachelors’ of Science degrees, one in Brain and Cognitive Science and the other in Humanities and Science with a focus in Writing.
Prior to her move to academia, Anna worked for several years as a science and travel writer (and editor) based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Anna also co-directed, co-produced, co-edited, and co-wrote the feature documentary film UNORTHODOX (2013), which is available on iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play. The film, which took Anna and and her co-director, Nadja Oertelt, nine years to complete, follows three rebellious Orthodox Jewish high school teenagers through a transformative post-high school year in Israel. Anna was selected as a 2007-2008 filmmaker-in-residence at WGBH in Boston to work on the project, and in 2012, the filmmakers completed a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise finishing funds. For more information, visit the Unorthodox website, Facebook, and Twitter.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys creating functional ceramics and pottery. Anna and her husband Jonathan Reisman, a physician and writer, are avid travelers who enjoy hiking in remote mountainous regions.
Contact: anna [at] annawexler dot com; follow me on Twitter.
Prior to her move to academia, Anna worked for several years as a science and travel writer (and editor) based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Anna also co-directed, co-produced, co-edited, and co-wrote the feature documentary film UNORTHODOX (2013), which is available on iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play. The film, which took Anna and and her co-director, Nadja Oertelt, nine years to complete, follows three rebellious Orthodox Jewish high school teenagers through a transformative post-high school year in Israel. Anna was selected as a 2007-2008 filmmaker-in-residence at WGBH in Boston to work on the project, and in 2012, the filmmakers completed a successful Kickstarter campaign to raise finishing funds. For more information, visit the Unorthodox website, Facebook, and Twitter.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys creating functional ceramics and pottery. Anna and her husband Jonathan Reisman, a physician and writer, are avid travelers who enjoy hiking in remote mountainous regions.
Contact: anna [at] annawexler dot com; follow me on Twitter.
