Joel Bernstein earned his Ph.D. in physical chemistry at Yale University for research on solid-state spectroscopy of organic compounds. Following postdoctoral stints at UCLA and the Weizmann Institute of Science, he joined the faculty of the newly established Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, where until 2010 he was the Carol and Barry Kaye Professor of Applied Science in the Chemistry Department. From 2010-2016, he was Global Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at New York University, both in Abu Dhabi and Shanghai. His research interests center on the organic solid state, with emphasis on understanding and utilizing polymorphism, structure-property relationships, hydrogen-bonding patterns and graph sets and organic conducting materials. He has published nearly 200 research and review articles and chapters on these subjects. He has served as a consultant to many multinational pharmaceutical companies and as a testifying witness in patent litigations on the solid-state chemistry of drugs.