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A FAST AND ROBUST FRAMEWORK FOR IMAGE FUSION AND ...

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Acknowledgements<br />

This work is the result of four and a half years of close collaboration with a unique<br />

team of scientists and friends. It was their sincere assistance and support that helped me reach<br />

this milestone.<br />

First and foremost, I would like to thank my advisor Professor Peyman Milanfar, my<br />

role model of an exceptional scientist and teacher. It was a great privilege and honor to work<br />

and study under his guidance. I would also like to thank him for his friendship, empathy, and<br />

great sense of humor (and for introducing me to French press coffee). I am grateful to my<br />

mentor Professor Michael Elad, for generously sharing his intellect, and ideas. His smiling<br />

face, patience, and careful comments were constant sources of encouragement.<br />

I would like to thank Dr. Julian Christou, for invaluable comments and feedback<br />

throughout these years and Professor Ali Shakouri for serving on my committee and reviewing<br />

this thesis. I am grateful to all UCSC professors specially Professors Benjamin Friedlander,<br />

Roberto Manduchi, Claire Max, Hai Tao, Donald Wiberg, and Michael Issacson. As the electri-<br />

cal engineering GSA representative for the last few years, I had the opportunity of interacting<br />

with Dean Steve Kang; I am thankful to him and Vice Provost Lisa Sloan for going the extra<br />

mile, making the graduate studies a more pleasant experience for the UCSC graduate students.<br />

I am thankful to mes professeurs préférés Hervé Le Mansec, Greta Hutchison, Miriam Ellis,<br />

and Angela Elsey in the French department. I owe a lot to my former M.Sc. advisors Pro-<br />

fessors Caro Lucas and Fariba Bahrami. I would like to say a big thank-you to the Oracle of<br />

the School of Engineering Carol Mullane and the wonderful UCSC staff, specially Jodi Rieger,<br />

Carolyn Stevens, Ma Xiong, Meredith Dyer, Andrea Legg, Heidi McGough, Lynne Sheehan,<br />

Derek Pearson, David Cosby, and Marcus Thayer. Also, I would like to thank the Center for<br />

Adaptive Optics (CFAO) for supporting and funding this research.<br />

Thanks to my friends and colleagues of many years, Ali and “the-other” Sina, for<br />

their unconditional friendship and support. Many thanks are due to Dirk and Emily for always<br />

being there for me, and to Saar for his friendship and unreserved honesty.<br />

xvi

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