Martin Nweeia – DoctorsTalents

Jane O’Brien, an anchor of BBC World News, joins Martin Nweeia, D.D.S., ’77, right, and Nweeia’s wife, Pamela Peeters, at the Smithsonian. Photo by Ryan Lavery

Dr. Martin Nweeia is the world’s leading expert on the narwhal’s tusk and tooth system. He is a National Foundation Scientist and has led over 20 High Arctic expeditions and carried 15 expedition flags to study the elusive narwhal. He holds doctorates in dentistry and surgery and is a member of the dental faculties of Harvard University and Case Western Reserve University. He also conducts research at the Canadian Museum of Nature and the Smithsonian Institution. The Smithsonian Institution has awarded him two fellowships: one in physical anthropology and one in vertebrate zoology.

His work has been featured in The New York Times, NPR’s “Pulse of the Planet,” “A Beautiful World,” “Morning Edition,” “Earth Wise,” and documentaries by National Geographic, “Découverte” (French Discovery), and the BBC, including “Natural Curiosities” with Sir David Attenborough. Dr. Nweeia has received a CINE Golden Eagle for the NGS Wild Chronicles narwhal story, the William Mills Prize for his book “Narwhal: Revealing An Arctic Legend,” and the Lowell Thomas Award for Arctic Research. His 2020 scientific publications have been published in Nature, PNAS, and two Smithsonian books.

Martin Nweeia ’77 and research colleague Adrian Arnauyumayuq complete experiments on a live narwhal in Arctic Bay, Nunavut, Canada, in 2007. Photo by Gretchen Freund

Ein ziemlich ausgefallenes Hobby hat der amerikanische Zahnarzt Martin Nweeia: Er studiert den Stoßzahn des Narwals. Nweeia, niedergelassen in Sharon im US-Staat Connecticut und Lehrbeauftragter an der School of Dental Medicine der Harvard University, fährt seit Jahren im Frühjahr nach Kanada in die Arktis und untersucht die rätselhaften Wale mit dem einen großen Zahn, berichtet “New Scientist” online.

The narwhal’s tusk—the model for the unicorn’s horn—is unique in nature, says Nweeia. “It’s the only known straight tusk and the only spirally twisted one.” In stress tests, narwhal tusks have proven to be extremely flexible and tough—a combination that’s unusual for teeth.

Nweeia examines a narwhal tusk and skull at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History before it is placed in a new exhibit, which opened in August. Photo by Stephen Voss

In male narwhals, one tusk grows to almost two and a half meters, while the other remains embedded in the jaw. Most females lack a tusk. The purpose of the tooth is still unclear. Weeia’s theory: “I think the tooth is a kind of sensor. It probably has something to do with detecting prey.” To test this, he is currently equipping whales with a sensor in their teeth.