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Education and Human Sciences

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High-quality research

Innovative and impactful
We use state-of-the-art technology to investigate the neural and muscular changes associated with aging, training, fatigue, disease and more. Research areas include motor control, proprioception, sensorimotor integration, muscle hypertrophy and atrophy, exercise prescription and training methodologies, tactical or military performance and brain behavior and plasticity. Our 2,300 square-foot facility is located in the academic wing of the Colvin Recreation Center.

Volunteer

as a study participant.
We are consistently looking for study participant volunteers. Check out the various research projects currently accepting participants.

Outreach

Connecting and serving the community
We coordinate many outreach initiatives throughout the year to engage youth in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning and spark their interest in related career paths.

Graduate Programs

Interested in pursuing a degree in health and human performance? Learn more about our master’s and doctoral programs.

Publications

Our research has been published in numerous journals and libraries over the years. Read more about our work.

Other Opportunities

Learn more about open faculty positions, graduate fellowship opportunities, internships and more.

Technology

Brain ImagingWe utilize functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to examine brain activity non-invasively during various sensory and motor tasks.

Evoked ContractionsWe can evoke contractions using electric or magnetic stimulation, and our lab utilizes transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and peripheral nerve stimulation.

Diagnostic UltrasoundUsing diagnostic ultrasound, we can evaluate architectural differences in the body’s soft tissues, including muscle or tendon. Often, properties such as muscle thickness or stiffness may differ across populations.

Balance We can evaluate a person’s postural stability using static measurements, such as how much a person sways while standing or dynamic measurements, such as a person’s ability to adjust to movements. These evaluations help assess an individual’s risk of falling.

Motor Unit RecordingsThe brain controls muscles through the use of motor neurons. Our decomposition system allows us to non-invasively assess the activity and behavior of those neurons by recording motor unit activity. Methods for extracting motor until action potential trains include:

  • High-density sEMG decomposition
  • 5-pin sEMG decomposition
  • Fine wire EMG (intramuscular)
  • Needle EMG (intramuscular)
  • Kinetics and KinematicsUsing multiple force plates, isokinetic dynameters, load cells and more, we can measure:

  • Force and rate of force development
  • Torque
  • Movement velocity
  • Acceleration
  • Power
  • Range of motion
  • Musculotendinous stiffness
  • Ground reaction forces
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