Newswise — PHILADELPHIA— James C. Gee, PhD, an associate professor of Radiologic Science and director of the Penn Image Computing and Science Laboratory in the department of Radiology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has been inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows.

Gee was nominated, reviewed, and elected by peers and members of the College of Fellows for outstanding contributions to advanced medical image registration and analysis methods.

Election to the AIMBE College of Fellows is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to a medical and biological engineer. The College of Fellows is comprised of the top two percent of medical and biological engineers. College membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to "engineering and medicine research, practice, or education” and to "the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of medical and biological engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to bioengineering education."

Gee's research focuses on biomedical image analysis and computing. Last October, he received two NIG grants totaling $3.9 million to develop a first-ever three-dimensional, cellular-resolution digital atlas of  brain cell types in collaboration with colleagues from the Allen Institute for Brain Science, MIT, Harvard, and University of California, San Diego. The atlas will include location, structure, function, molecular properties, and connectedness to other cells to classify and catalogue the diversity of cell types in the brain to improve research and treatment for a range of neurological conditions.

Gee earned bachelor of science degrees in electrical engineering and  computer science, and a master of science in electrical engineering from the University of Washington, and a doctorate in computer and information science from Penn.  

A formal induction ceremony was held during the AIMBE Annual Meeting at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC on April 9, 2018. Gee was inducted along with 156 colleagues who make up the AIMBE College of Fellows Class of 2018.