2.S97: Computational imaging: physics and algorithms

Fall | Undergraduate | 12 Units | Prereq: (1.000 or 1.00 or 2.086 or 3.019 or 6.001) and 18.C06

Contemporary understanding of imaging is essentially computational: it involves encoding onto a form of radiation the information about a physical object, transferring the radiation through the imaging system, converting it to a digital signal, and finally computationally decoding the object information and presenting it to the user. This class introduces a unified formulation of computational imaging systems in the form of a three-round “learning spiral”: in the first two rounds of the spiral, the instructors describe the physical and algorithmic parts in two exemplary imaging systems. The third round the students conduct themselves in the context of the class project on an imaging system of their choice. The undergraduate and graduate versions share lectures but have different recitations. Throughout the term we also conduct optional “clinics” to even out background knowledge of linear algebra, optimization, and computational imaging-related programming best practices for students of diverse disciplinary backgrounds.