Cecil Hayes obtained his Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics from Cornell University in 1964 and his PhD in physics from Harvard University in 1973. His thesis used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to study internal forces in zinc compounds. While at University of Utah, he got involved in the early stages of what became known as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). In 1981, he joined GE Medical Systems when they began to develop their first MRI scanner . He invented something that he called a birdcage resonator that transmitted and received the MR signals in the body or head. Versions of this design are still being used in virtually every MRI scanner in the world.
After ten years at GE, Dr. Hayes joined the Radiology faculty at the University of Washington, where he continued to make devices for MRI research. He recently retired and has begun to create items that he calls art projects. He uses his woodworking skills to assemble multiple layers of plywood shapes brightly colored with acrylic pigments. He has also begun to print some of the many digital images he has acquired while traveling or observing his front yard.
After ten years at GE, Dr. Hayes joined the Radiology faculty at the University of Washington, where he continued to make devices for MRI research. He recently retired and has begun to create items that he calls art projects. He uses his woodworking skills to assemble multiple layers of plywood shapes brightly colored with acrylic pigments. He has also begun to print some of the many digital images he has acquired while traveling or observing his front yard.