Learn more about research associate professor Adam Maxwell, why he loves teaching, Virginia Tech, and advice for students interested in biomedical engineering and BEAM.

Why Virginia Tech? What do you love about VT?

I love the people I work with and that is why I’m here. I’ve held several collaborations with VT faculty members and students prior to coming here. I have always been impressed by the motivation, energy, and expertise my VT collaborators brought to our research projects. These collaborations have been some of the most rewarding of my career.

Virginia Tech also has a growing presence in the field of focused ultrasound surgery and was recently designated a Focused Ultrasound Center of Excellence by the Focused Ultrasound Foundation. I’m excited by the commitment of the university to this field and I hope to grow some of the excitement around the technology with my own research.

What is your favorite thing about being a professor/faculty member?

I enjoy working with curious and passionate people. That fits the profile of many of the students and faculty here. I love the environment and profession encourage continual self-improvement and lifelong learning.

What originally got you interested in your teaching/work and/or research?

Simply put, it is what physicist Richard Feynman called ‘the pleasure of finding things out’. I greatly enjoy doing research at the interface of basic and applied science and learning about the natural world.

Many of the advances in medical technology came about because we learned how different forms of energy interact with the body, and this is an emphasis of my research. We still have a lot to learn about these interactions and how we can use them to create better image-guided therapies.

What advice do you have for students looking to join the Biomedical Engineering field?

Be prepared to interface with a lot of different areas of expertise, be open to hearing different perspectives, and engage in team science. We work with people from a variety of backgrounds, including physicists, life scientists, engineers, regulatory specialists, veterinarians, and physicians. None of us individually know how to do everything it takes to move a new medical therapy or technology from invention to practice. We have to rely on and trust each other’s expertise to make translational steps forward.

What is your favorite Virginia Tech memory?

I announced I was moving to Virginia Tech to my close collaborator (Prof. Eli Vlaisavljevich in BEAM) and his lab members over Zoom last year. The collective response was so loud we had to end the call because no one could get a word in after that! I definitely felt this was a great decision at that point.

Visit Adam's faculty bio page.