As computer scientists we initially learn to write code to do many different tasks, from simple sorting algorithms to complex database search algorithms. As our education progresses we move into specialize areas. In my case, computer vision and computer graphics were where I learned how to find an object in an image, reconstruct its geometry, and render it in a synthetic image. It was interesting, except initially I really did not know anything about the object, how the image was taken, or that there were multiple image modalities. The next thing I knew I was learning about cerebral vascular anomalies, magnetic resonance angiography, and 3D reconstruction as well as being invited into the operating suite to watch how the images were being acquired. I was interacting with the application scientists. This interaction allowed me to better understand not only the process but also the problem, which in turn influenced my research direction.

From this early experience, I have had the opportunity to work with many scientists and on many applications from climate to combustion to ocean energy to fish patterns. In this talk I will describe some of these interactions, and the odd paths that resulted, with the goal of showing that while writing code is rewarding, understanding the problem behind the code can be very enlightening, and that solving such problems takes a team effort.

Bio:
Dr. Allen R. Sanderson is a Research Scientist at the Scientific Computing and Imaging Institute (SCI) at the University of Utah. He works in the broad field of data analysis and visualization with much of the data being generated on today's leadership class supercomputers. During his 25 years in the field he has had the opportunity to work with physicians and scientists from a variety fields. His early work focused on medical image analysis and visualization of the cerebral vascular system. Today he continues to collaborate with physicians and physiologists while working with application scientists who are studying such applications as climate change, fusion energy, oil dispersion in the oceans, and wave energy.

After earning his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Oregon State University Dr. Sanderson worked in aerospace for several years before returning to graduate school where he earned his M.E. in Bioengineering and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Utah. He was a Chateaubriand Fellow at INRIA in Sophia Antipolis, France. After nearly five years at the Evans & Sutherland Computer Corporation he returned to academic research. He has been at the SCI Institute since 2002.