Flight Control
flight control
Sensing in Insect Wings
Ali Weber (University of Washington, USA) uses the the hawkmoth as a model system, to investigate how information from a small number of mechanoreceptors on the wings are used in flight control. She employs a combination of experimental and computational techniques to study how these sensors respond during flight and how one might optimally array a set of these sensors to best provide feedback during flight.
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.
An insect vision-based flight control model with a plastic efference copy
COSYNE 2022
An insect vision-based flight control model with a plastic efference copy
COSYNE 2022
A computational map of flight control in Drosophila melanogaster
COSYNE 2025