The Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research blazes new trails in bioscience. The organization, funded by both the public and private sectors, investigates such diseases as Parkinson's and cancer and dives into the depths of biology, genomics, and genetics to gain new understanding about disease and health. The Whitehead Institute contributed to the international effort to map the human genome, and is actively researching stem cells. Other achievements include discovering a system for multiplying adult stem cells and creating the first genetically defined human cancer cell. The institute was founded in 1982 by philanthropist Edwin "Jack" Whitehead and draws researchers from MIT.