Professor David Townsend worked as a particle physicist at CERN, before becoming a medical physicist. He was instrumental in developing the first positron emission tomography systems, and invented the PET CT system that combined PET imaging with CT imaging, TIME Magazine’s invention of the year in 2000. Professor Townsend received a long list of prestigious awards and invited lectureships, recognizing his extraordinary contribution to medical physics. He has worked as a medical physicist in Geneva University Hospital, the University of Pittsburgh, and the National University of Singapore. His profile can be found at https://hstalks.com/expert/2970/prof-david-townsend/.

 

The following interview was done by Hugo Currie as a year twelve high school student at the Riverina Anglican College in Wagga Wagga, Australia. He is passionate about physics and is now pursing a career in engineering and physics at the Australian National University. Below is an interview that Hugo conducted with Professor David Townsend. Hugo is hopeful that other students with similar interests will be inspired from this conversation, and he thanks Professor Townsend for giving his time and wisdom in this interview.