Maya Theresia is a scientist, storyteller and artist. At Tufts University, Maya earned a B.S. in biomedical engineering with a minor in computer science, while sneaking in art classes at the SMFA whenever she could. Born in the States to Indo-Guyanese/ African-American/ German parents and raised in Australia, she refuses to be confined to a label. For Maya, storytelling and science are both tools to make sense of our world. In 2021, Maya began her post-baccalaureate training in systems neuroscience at NYU. As a Senior Research Associate, Maya wrote and received an NIH grant to study how circuits in the brain drive the perception of touch and influence behavior in mice. In 2023, Maya wrote and performed a story for the Story Collider: Random Walks show in NYC, pondering science as religion. Maya has recently transitioned into the biotech industry, where she is investigating a neuronal circuit that regulates the immune system as a Senior Research Associate at NILO Therapeutics. Outside of the lab, Maya is developing an animated short film, inspired by her Grandpa’s experience of time-shifting with Alzheimer’s disease. 

Personal Science New Wave Manifesto:

Science and art are not in opposition but are closely intertwined. They both start with an observation, whether physical (the world) or abstract (the human condition), that sparks our imagination. Ultimately, they are both pursuits to make sense of our reality. There seems to be a modern idea that science is purely rational; yet, we are not unbiased observers of the world, but active participants experiencing it. Though anchored in repeatable steps and empirical evidence, the process of science is a creative one. In fact, to truly be unbiased is to set your imagination free – and art is creativity in its freest form. As Einstein said, “where the world ceases to be the scene of our personal hopes and wishes, where we face it as free beings admiring, asking, and observing, there we enter the realm of Art and Science.”