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Welcome!

The focus of our research group is to develop data-driven mathematical models that describe the mechanics of animal movement. One half of our lab is interested in the efficiency of various mechanisms of fluid transport and locomotion. The second half of our lab is interested in the system biomechanics of horses. Our approach to all of these problems is to use kinematic and morphometric data to design physical models and numerical simulations. These models and simulations are then used to better understand the mechanical forces experienced by organisms. Our work focuses on a few of model systems: 1) flight adaptations in the smallest flying insects, such as thrips and parasitoid wasps, 2) coupled respiratory and gait dynamics in horses, and 3) the fluid dynamics of feeding and swimming in jellyfish and other cnidarians.

All students and researchers who are interested in using an interdisciplinary approach to study problems in comparative biomechanics and physiology are encouraged to join the group! Prospective graduate students can find more information here. Our lab includes mathematicians who have not formally studied biology since high school and biologists who have not formally studied math since calculus I. We've also had chemists, physicists, engineers, and artists work both in the lab and with us as collaborators.