I am a graduate researcher working with Melissa Skala, Medical Engineering, to develop label-free optical imaging technologies and quantitative image analysis methods. I was immediately captivated by the concept of label-free optical imaging: By using light in just the right way, you can image intact, biological tissue using the structures and molecules already present. This means we can use the same technique to study disease in patients as easily as in model organisms. My current research focuses on two label-free technologies, optical coherence tomography and autofluorescence microscopy. Each technology poses specific challenges to existing image analysis tools, so I mostly work on new analysis methods that can extract robust, quantitative information from these images, even in the presence of noise and artifacts. My goal is to enable these label-free technologies to solve problems in areas like tissue engineering, neurosurgery, respiratory medicine, and precision oncology.