Background:
Animal movement arises through the interaction of different body systems (e.g. muscles, nerves, and other tissues) with the physical environment. To successfully move their body, an animal must process and act upon sensory information acquired from their own body and the environment. As large variation in animal shape, size, behavior, and environment exists across species, the systems responsible for movement will be challenged to meet the demands associated with different animal-environment interactions. The central theme of our research is to determine how neural and mechanical processes act together and evolve across species to produce movement.
Our lab is currently working on two major questions:
1. Where should sensors be positioned across the limb of an animal to best acquire information about its own movement and the environment?
2. How and why do animals blink? And how and why has this behavior diversified across vertebrates?
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