My laboratory is deeply interested in the discovery and development of new reaction methodology en route to the chemical synthesis of complex bioactive molecules. Over the course of the past six years, research in our group at the California Institute of Technology has been initiated in the general area of synthetic chemistry, with a focus on the development of new strategies for the preparation of complex molecules, including natural products that possess interesting structural, biological, and physical properties. Concurrent to this program of target driven synthesis is a strong effort directed toward the development of new techniques and reaction methods, which will be useful for a range of applications. Typically, the complex target structure is used as an inspiration for the development of new reactions and technologies that may eventually be regarded as general synthetic methodology.