Undergraduate Research

Look Deep into My Eyes

Look Deep into Elliot Rouse’s Eyes and You Might See Well into the Future.

Elliott Rouse, a mechanical engineering major, conducted his undergraduate research on corneal hysteresis, the difference in inward and outward pressures at which flattening of the cornea occurs. His research of abnormalities in corneal hysteresis, common in many eye diseases, may help identify patients who have or are at risk for developing glaucoma.

Rouse wrote his own procedures for conducting research using people for his project. He then recruited test subjects and performed experiments.

“Writing the human protocol was an amazingly complicated process,” he said. “It took me almost a year to do. This opportunity gave me a good foundation of how research is done, so I knew what I was getting into as a potential researcher.”

Now a doctoral student in biomedical engineering at Northwestern University, Rouse continues to use his research background and aspires to work in biomedical research in industry.