Michael Brady (biomedical engineer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir Michael Brady
FRS FMedSci FREng
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
John Michael Brady
30 April 1945 |
| Alma mater |
|
| Known for | Kadir–Brady saliency detector |
| Awards |
|
| Scientific career | |
| Fields |
|
| Institutions |
|
| Thesis | Just-non-cross varieties of groups (1970) |
| Doctoral advisor | László György Kovács |
| Doctoral students |
|
Sir John Michael Brady (born 30 April 1945) is a famous professor who teaches about using computers to look at medical images. He works at the University of Oxford. He has been a special member of Keble College, Oxford, since 1985. In 2015, he also became a member of the French Academy of Sciences. Before this, he was a professor at Oxford from 1985 to 2010. He also worked as a senior scientist at MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) in the USA from 1980 to 1985.
Contents
Learning and Early Career
Michael Brady studied at the University of Manchester. He earned his first degree in mathematics in 1966. Then, he got his Master of Science degree in 1968.
He continued his studies at the Australian National University. In 1970, he earned his PhD. His research was about a math topic called group theory.
Exploring Computer Vision and Robotics
Professor Brady is an expert in image analysis. This means he helps computers "see" and understand pictures. At first, he worked on understanding shapes at MIT. Later, he focused on robotics, which is about designing and building robots.
Most importantly, he became a leader in analyzing medical images. At MIT, he worked on how computers could understand the outlines of shapes. He also explored how to apply advanced math to 3D data. He even worked on how computers could understand textures in images.
He also worked with other scientists on robotics. They published important articles and started a series of conferences. These meetings helped share new ideas in robotics.
Robotics at Oxford
When Professor Brady came to Oxford in 1985, he started the Robotics Laboratory. He brought together many talented researchers. Their first goal was to develop mobile robots. These robots could move around on their own.
They worked on how robots could combine information from different sensors. This helped robots detect obstacles in their path in real-time. For example, a robot could "slalom" around an obstacle. If avoiding it was too hard, the robot would plan a completely new path. This work led to a company called Guidance Navigation Systems Ltd in 1991.
Helping Medicine with Images
Around 1989, Professor Brady started to focus more on medical imaging. He was especially interested in breast cancer. This was after his mother-in-law passed away from the disease.
For nearly 30 years, he has worked with Ralph Highnam. They wrote a book together about analyzing mammogram images. They also helped start companies like Mirada Solutions Ltd and Volpara Health Technologies. Their work helped create new ways to analyze medical images. This new approach uses physics to understand the images better. This work also led to another company called ScreenPoint bv.
Professor Brady has helped create many algorithms. These are like step-by-step instructions for computers. His algorithms help with image segmentation (dividing an image into parts). They also help with image registration (lining up different images). And they help with feature detection (finding important parts in an image).
With Timor Kadir and Andrew Zisserman, he created the Kadir–Brady saliency detector. This is a very important tool in computer vision. It helps computers find the most interesting parts of an image.
Leading in Artificial Intelligence
Professor Brady is currently the Interim President of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI). This is the world's first university focused only on Artificial Intelligence (AI). It is located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Outside of his university work, Professor Brady has helped start many companies. These companies use medical imaging to help people. Some examples include Matakina and ScreenPoint for mammogram analysis. Mirada Medical helps combine different medical images. Perspectum Diagnostics uses magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to check the liver.
Awards and Recognitions
Professor Brady has received many important awards for his work.
- In 1992, he became a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
- In 1997, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS). This is a very high honor for scientists. His award recognized his work in artificial intelligence and how he helped robots "see." He was praised for applying ideas about human vision to computer problems. He also helped develop ways for computers to understand handwritten notes. His work helped robots understand 3D shapes. He also improved how robots use information from different images.
- In 2004, he was knighted by the Queen. This means he received the title "Sir" for his great contributions to engineering.
- In 2009, he gave the Turing Lecture. This is a special talk given by leading computer scientists.
- He also received the Faraday Medal in 2000 and the Millennium Medal in 2000.
- He was a founding member of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence in 1990.
- In 2008, he became a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Professor Brady has also received honorary doctorates from many universities. This means they gave him a special degree to honor his achievements. These universities include the University of Essex, University of Manchester, University of Southampton, University of Liverpool, Paul Sabatier University, Oxford Brookes University, and the University of York.
