Dr. Ehsan Samei (Radiology) has received a new three-year grant from Siemens Medical Solutions titled “Optimal design of CT protocols based on task-based image quality”. The modern CT systems offer immense flexibility in the way a patient image can be acquired. This flexibility is offered through a range of acquisition and reconstruction parameters that impact the resulting image quality as well as dose. The multi parametric space of image acquisition, while flexible, is complex to navigate. This is primarily due to the fact that the parameters are generally based on technological aspects of image acquisition, while the goal of optimal imaging is a desired level of image quality and safety. The correspondence between the scan parameter space and image quality-safety space is not straightforward due to the multi-dimensional reality of both spaces. The goal of this project is to devise a metrology based on fundamentals of image quality that can inform the optimal design of CT acquisition protocol. The idea is that, based on the current science of image quality, a set of indices can be devised that capture the expected image quality of a CT acquisition prior to an exam. The indices can thus be used as a tool to guide the selection of the scan parameters towards targeted image quality criteria.