biomechanics

Deception, ExoNETs, SmushWare & Organic Data: Tech-facilitated neurorehabilitation & human-machine training

Making use of visual display technology and human-robotic interfaces, many researchers have illustrated various opportunities to distort visual and physical realities. We have had success with interventions such as error augmentation, sensory crossover, and negative viscosity.  Judicial application of these techniques leads to training situations that enhance the learning process and can restore movement ability after neural injury. I will trace out clinical studies that have employed such technologies to improve the health and function, as well as share some leading-edge insights that include deceiving the patient, moving the "smarts" of software into the hardware, and examining clinical effectiveness

Reverse engineering Hydra

Hydra is an extraordinary creature. Continuously replacing itself, it can live indefinitely, performing a stable repertoire of reasonably sophisticated behaviors. This remarkable stability under plasticity may be due to the uniform nature of its nervous system, which consists of two apparently noncommunicating nerve net layers. We use modeling to understand the role of active muscles and biomechanics interact with neural activity to shape Hydra behaviour. We will discuss our findings and thoughts on how this simple nervous system may self-organize to produce purposeful behavior.

An evolutionarily conserved hindwing circuit mediates Drosophila flight control

My research at the interface of neurobiology, biomechanics, and behavior seeks to understand how the timing precision of sensory input structures locomotor output. My lab studies the flight behavior of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, combining powerful genetic tools available for labeling and manipulating neural circuits with cutting-edge imaging in awake, behaving animals. This work has the potential to fundamentally reshape understanding of the evolution of insect flight, as well as highlight the tremendous importance of timing in the context of locomotion. Timing is crucial to the nervous system. The ability to rapidly detect and process subtle disturbances in the environment determines whether an animal can attain its next meal or successfully navigate complex, unpredictable terrain. While previous work on various animals has made tremendous strides uncovering the specialized neural circuits used to resolve timing differences with sub-microsecond resolution, it has focused on the detection of timing differences in sensory systems. Understanding of how the timing of motor output is structured by precise sensory input remains poor. My research focuses on an organ unique to fruit flies, called the haltere, that serves as a bridge for detecting and acting on subtle timing differences, helping flies execute rapid maneuvers. Understanding how this relatively simple insect canperform such impressive aerial feats demands an integrative approach that combines physics, muscle mechanics, neuroscience, and behavior. This unique, powerful approach will reveal the general principles that govern sensorimotor processing.

A musculoskeletal simulation of Drosophila to study the biomechanics of limb movements

COSYNE 2025

Neural control and biomechanics of cat paw shake response