David Smith

David Smith, PhD, holds multiple academic roles at Vanderbilt University: Research Assistant Professor in Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Physics & Astronomy. He is affiliated with the Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science. His research focuses on developing MRI techniques for cancer imaging, particularly leveraging compressed sensing and machine learning.

Education: BS in Physics and BA in Astronomy from the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin), MA in Astronomy from Harvard University, and PhD in Astrophysics from UT-Austin. He completed postdoctoral research in plasma astrophysics at the University of Arizona before joining Vanderbilt as a medical physics resident in radiation oncology.

Research interests include advancing MRI methodologies and their clinical applications in oncology. His work bridges physics, engineering, and medical sciences to improve diagnostic and therapeutic imaging technologies.

• Awards: National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow, Harrington Doctoral Fellow

Professional trajectory includes a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Vanderbilt’s Institute of Imaging Science (2010) and appointment as Research Assistant Professor (2014).