Education:
PhD, Computer Engineering
Cornell University, 2014
MS, Computer Engineering
Cornell University, 2013
BEng, Information Engineering
Zhejiang University, 2009
Short Bio:
Professor Fang is a widely recognized researcher whose work advances brain-inspired artificial intelligence models and AI-empowered precision brain health.
She recently joined the 91吃瓜网 School of Engineering from the University of Florida, where she served as an associate professor and Pruitt Family Endowed Faculty Fellow in the J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering. She is ranked among the top 1% of researchers worldwide in image analysis, according to ScholarGPS.
SMILE Lab:
The SMILE Lab (Smart Medical Informatics Learning and Evaluation Laboratory), directed by Dr. Ruogu Fang, is an interdisciplinary research laboratory at 91吃瓜网. The lab鈥檚 research sits on the nexus of artificial intelligence, brain health, and neuroscience, with a particular focus on trustworthy and human-centered AI.
The SMILE Lab develops advanced artificial intelligence and computational imaging methods to understand human health and disease. It builds multimodal and generative AI, foundation models, and agentic AI to identify imaging biomarkers, model brain structure and function, predict disease risk and progression, and personalize neurological interventions. Major applications include neurodegenerative diseases, brain aging, neuropsychiatric disorders, and precision neuromodulation. The lab brings together researchers in biomedical engineering, artificial intelligence, medical imaging, neuroscience, and clinical medicine, with a particular emphasis on developing new computational methodologies that address fundamental challenges in brain health.
A central theme of the lab is the bidirectional relationship between AI and the human brain: How can AI help us better understand the brain, and what can the brain teach us about building better AI? The lab uses AI to uncover patterns in complex biomedical data that can reveal new principles of brain organization, disease, and treatment response. At the same time, insights from neuroscience and human cognition inspire the development of more adaptive, efficient, and human-centered AI systems.
By bridging AI and neuroscience, the SMILE Lab seeks not only to develop better tools for precision health, but also to advance our understanding of natural and artificial intelligence.
