About Me
Hey 👋
I am a PhD student at the University of Waterloo with a focus in biomedical engineering and machine learning. I have an avid interest in all things medicine but a particular interest in deep learning, medical imaging, and translational research. I am super excited about research and bringing new technologies to patients, either through entrepreneurial ventures or otherwise.
My current research focuses on leveraging the rich source of data from photon absorption remote sensing (PARS) to create better systems around medical treatment & diagnosing. I'm really interested in translating technical findings to tangible clinical results, from bechtop to bedside, and actually making an impact on the patient.
Please reach out to me if you have any ideas that you'd like to collaborate on!
Project Spotlight
- IQCELL Research - Python package to infer, analyze, and simulate gene regulatory networks from single-cell RNA seq data of stem cell cultures. [Paper]
- Dynamic OCT Microscope Capstone - Designing a dynamic optical coherence tomography (OCT) microscope to take 3D tomograms non-invasively. [Poster]
- Transport Phenomena in Cells & Tissues Course - Authored de facto textbook for course on mathematically modelling fluid transport in biological context. (BMEG 371)
- PixGen Hackathon - Database and image generator to train doctors on skin conditions of people of colours (MedHacks 2021 @ JHU)
Curriculum Vitae
Journals
- Amin Abdolkhani, Umar Ali, Hamza Rasheed, and Johnny Zhao. "Characterization and Detection of Misinformation to Inform Healthcare Policies" in STEM Fellowship Journal. (Full Paper)
Conferences
- Umar Ali, Andy Zhao, Daniel C. Louie, Yuheng Wang, Harvey Lui, Sunil Kalia, and Tim K. Lee. "Bridging Skin Color Bias in Dermatology with Generative Networks" in Harvard University NCRC 2024
- Umar Ali, Andy Zhao, Daniel C. Louie, Yuheng Wang, Harvey Lui, Sunil Kalia, and Tim K. Lee. "Generating Skin Images Using Artificial Intelligence" in UBC Faculty of Medicine Research Showcase 2022
- Umar Ali, Andy Zhao, Daniel C. Louie, Yuheng Wang, Harvey Lui, Sunil Kalia, and Tim K. Lee. "Synthesizing novel skin cancer clinical images for patients of color using a style-based generative adversarial network" in BC Cancer Summit 2021