It's really exciting to be able to come up with something new or do something that no one's done before, so no one knows what's going to happen."

Max Kazman is a senior at Georgia Tech, majoring in chemical and biomolecular engineering and minoring in computer science. 

We spoke with Max on August 27th, 2022 about his journey through the world of STEM, and how that journey brought him to doing research into cell-free biosensors at the Styczynski Lab and Georgia Tech. His research focuses on quantifying the readouts of these biosensors. We spoke in depth about the reasons that scientists choose to use cell-free biosensors, including that cell-free extracts, unlike those that are still whole cells, can be freeze-dried and stored at room temperature.

In his high school career, he decided to take AP Biology and AP Chemistry as soon as he could, and participated in the Broad Summer Scholars Program, which he says really sent him down this path to chemical and biomolecular engineering research.

We also spoke about the reason he enjoys research so much: the potential to learn what no one has before. He speaks about how much more he learns through research than through traditional academic structures, and how exciting it is to do what no one has done before.

In the future, he is looking forward to giving back to the STEM community and getting more involved with BioBuilder.