The Origins of 3D Optical Imaging of Cataracts

Barry R. Masters

What do optical biomedical imaging applied to cataract re- search and aerial photogrammetry have in common? The work of Theodor Scheimpflug, an Austrian optics pioneer of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, connects these diverse fields. This fascinating story illustrates the fundamental connection between optical developments for military aerial photogrammetry and today’s world of biomedical imaging. It also demonstrates that in the rapidly evolving field of optics, one can never predict what will develop from one’s research.