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Lab Members

Faculty

Stephen H. Scott portrait.Stephen H. Scott

Stephen H. Scott is a professor in the Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences at Queen's University. He is also a member of the Centre for Neuroscience Studies and the CIHR Group in Sensory-Motor Systems. He graduated from the University of Waterloo in Systems Designs Engineering for his undergraduate degree and a MASc with Dr. D.A. Winter. He then did a PhD with Dr. Gerry Loeb at Queen’s University in the Department of Physiology. After that he went to the Université de Montréal for his postdoctoral training in the Department of Physiology with Dr. John Kalaska from 1993 to 1995. His first faculty position was as a chercheur adjoint in the Department of Physiology at Université de Montréal in 1995. He moved his lab to Queen's University in 1997.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Adarsh Kumar, PhD

Adarsh joined the lab in July 2022 after completing his PhD in motor learning at IIT Gandhinagar, India. His research interests span motor learning, motor control, neurophysiology of movement, neurological disorders, and memory. Currently, he is working on the CanStim project, which aims to identify optimal brain stimulation parameters for stroke rehabilitation in non-human primates (NHPs).

   

PhD Candidates

Faranak Akbarifar MSc

(2019 - present)

Faranak is a PhD student at the School of Computing, Queen's University. She received her BSc in electrical engineering from Sharif University of Technology and MSc in biomedical engineering from University of Tehran in 2007 and 2010, respectively. She has joined the lab in September 2019. Her research interests include biomedical data analysis, artificial intelligence in medical imaging and computer-assisted diagnosis.

 

Sachitha Wijekoon

Sachitha joined the lab in September 2022 after graduating from Queen’s University with a B.Sc. Honours degree in Life Sciences, specializing in Neuroscience. He is now pursuing a M.Sc. in Neuroscience under the co-supervision of Dr. Vincent DePaul. His research focuses on utilizing markerless motion capture technology to analyze and study gait and movement patterns in stroke patients, aiming to improve rehabilitation strategies.

Matt Jacobs

Matt joined the lab in September 2022. He graduated from University of California Santa Cruz with B.S. in Cognitive Science with Honors and a minor in computer science and worked in the High Level Perception Lab under Professor Nicolas Davidenko. Professionally, Matt worked at Open Minds, Silicon Valley. Working closely with self-advocates, Matt helped found the Social Innovation Lab, a UX lab focused on inclusivity and accessibility in education. Currently, his research surrounds sensory integration and voluntary motor control using non-human primate models. 

  

Research Staff


Mary Jo Demers

Mary Jo, a physiotherapist, joined the lab in November 2006. With degrees in Human Kinetics and Physical Therapy from the University of Windsor and Queen's University, she has focused on Stroke Rehabilitation at Providence Care since 1989. Retiring in December 2021, she still supports our clinical projects.

 

  Maxwell He

Maxwell joined the lab as a research assistant in September 2023, focusing on collecting clinical and robotic data. He is currently a second-year Bachelor of Health Sciences (BHSc) student at Queen's University, contributing significantly to ongoing research projects.

 

 Catherine Lowrey, PhD

Catherine joined the lab in 2012 after earning her BSc in Human Kinetics from the University of Guelph, and completing her MSc in Biomechanics and PhD in Neurophysiology. Her current research explores how brain injuries affect voluntary arm movement and postural adjustments.

  Kim Moore portrait.Kim Moore

Kim, the senior laboratory technologist, manages the daily operations of the lab. She graduated from St. Lawrence College in Kingston in 1992 and is a dedicated member of the Canadian Association for Laboratory Animal Science (CALAS). Her role is pivotal in maintaining high standards of lab functionality and efficiency.

  Blank portrait.Lorelei Samis

Lorelei, a physiotherapist with a Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy from Queen’s University (1989), joined the lab in December 2021 as a research assistant. She retired in June 2021 after 31 years at Providence Care Hospital, specializing in Respiratory Rehabilitation, and continues her impactful work in our lab.

 

 

   

Technology Development

Helen Bretzke portrait.Helen Bretzke, BA, BSc

Helen administers the lab's databases and writes software to process and analyze experimental data. She also writes task programs for KINARM robotic labs.  She received an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Toronto (2006) and another in Drama from Queen's (1990).

 Blank portrait.Sean Hickman

Sean, the lab's Mechanical Technologist, is integral to new product development and the maintenance and repair of equipment. His expertise ensures that all lab machinery operates efficiently and supports ongoing research and development initiatives. His role is vital for the lab's success.

  Blank portrait.Mike Lewis

Mike, the Computing Systems Technologist at the Centre for Neuroscience Studies, manages the maintenance and operation of the group's computer systems, servers, and network equipment. His technical expertise ensures the reliability and security of all digital infrastructure, supporting vital research activities.

Collaborators

Alumni

 

  • Dr. Daniel Armstrong was in the lab from May 2023 until September 2024.  His work focused on investigating the mechanism explaining how muscular co-contraction aids in our ability to respond to perturbations.
  • Dr. Paul Cisek
  • Dr. Tyler Cluff left the lab in June 2016. His focus of his work was investigating the adaptation and task-dependent attributes of rapid feedback responses evoked by mechanical perturbation.
  • Dr. Frédéric Crevecoeur joined the lab in July 2010. He took a position at Université catholique de Louvain in August 2014.
  • Dr. Kevin Cross was in the lab from 2015-2021.  His interests included computational neuroscience and neurophysiology.
  • Dr. Paul Gribble
  • Dr. Hui Guang worked in the lab from 2019 until 2023 investigating the neural substrates of sensorimotor control.  He went on to a post-doctoral fellowship at the Institute of Neuroscience, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
  • Dr. Troy Herter left the lab in January 2012 to become an Assistant Professor in the Department of Exercise Science at The University of South Carolina.
  • Dr. Carl Jackson joined the lab in September 2009. His focus was on computational neuronal network models of upper limb function.
  • Dr. Jae-Yoon Jung left the lab to take a position at Harvard Medical School in Boston.
  • Dr. Shoko Kasuga left the lab in January 2021. Her research focus was on understanding how multi-sensory integration is achieved in online motor control.
  • Dr. Isaac Kurtzer is currently an Assistant Professor in the department of Neuroscience and Histology at New York College of Osteopathic Medicine
  • Dr. Andrea de Lima-Pardini's interests focused on the neural correlates of movement disorders and rehabilitation.  She left the lab in 2022 to take a position as Research Project Manager for Queen's University.
  • Dr. Chantelle Murnaghan left the lab in December 2013. The focus of her work was investigating how neural activity from various areas of the brain is modulated following mechanical perturbations to the limb.
  • Dr. Tomohiko Takei left the lab and moved to National Institute of Neuroscience, Tokyo, Japan and advanced his neurophysiological work as a staff scientist and a section chief. His current work focuses on understanding how sophisticated feedback control is implemented in the central nervous system. (2014-2018)

  • Kayne Park finished his PhD in February 2024.
  • Dr. Teige Bourke finished his PhD in May 2016.
  • Dr. Angela Coderre finished her PhD in March 2011.
  • Dr. Ethan Heming finished his PhD in January 2019.
  • Dr. Timothy Lillicrap is currently an adjunct professor at Google DeepMind.
  • Dr. Mostafa Mostafavi finished his PhD in May 2016.
  • Dr. Richard Moulton completed his PhD in August 2022.
  • Dr. Joe Nashed finished his PhD in April 2014.
  • Dr. Mohsen Omrani finished his PhD in June 2015.
  • Dr. Andrew Pruszynski left the lab in January 2011.
  • Dr Leif Simmatis finished his PhD in August 2020.
  • Dr. Kan Singh
  • Dr. Kathrin Tyryshkin was a PhD student in the School of Computing under co-supervision of Janice Glasgow and Stephen Scott. She completed her PhD in September 2014.

  • Amr Abu-Zeid
  • Mariam Baig
  • Parsa Balalaie, August 2023
  • Bill Cabel
  • April Christiansen finished her MSc in October 2021
  • Melanie Demmer
  • Baiju Devani
  • Spencer Early
  • Kirsten Graham
  • Geoff King
  • Tereza Korbel
  • ​Jean-Luc Marnet
  • Isabelle Mastantuono, August 2023
  • Lydia Reid, October 2022.
  • Stacey Rombough
  • Nolan Wilson
  • Colleen Fleury, June 2023
  • Jack Lott, July 2023

  • Jordan Miller was a laboratory technologist assisting with the daily functions of the lab. She is a Registered Veterinary Technician and a member of CALAS pursuant of her RLAT certification. She graduated from the Veterinary Technology program at St. Lawrence college in 2020.

  • Simone Appaqaq was a laboratory technologist in the lab from May 2012 until August 2021.  She is a graduate of Veterinary Technology at St. Lawrence College (2011).

  • Peter Boyd was a laboratory software engineer. Peter was involved in designing and implementing experimental control and data acquisition software.

  • Dr. Ian Brown works part-time as Manager of Biomedical Product Development and part-time as Vice-President of Kinarm (BKIN Technologies Ltd.). Dr. Brown received his BSc in Engineering Physics here at Queen’s University, followed by a PhD in muscle physiology, also at Queen’s, and then a post-doctoral fellowship at Caltech in the field of cerebellar neurophysiology. Before leaving Los Angeles, Dr. Brown spent 1.5 years as a researcher at the A.E. Mann Institute for Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Brown has been working on technology development since moving back to Canada in the spring of 2002. His work has focused primarily on the KINARM product line, including hardware, software and task development, and on managing the transfer of technology from lab to commercial enterprise.

  • Chris Grebeldinger was a laboratory software engineer from 2003 to 2005

  • Luke Harris was the lab Mechanical Technician. He graduated from Durham College technical school in 2001 and is a licensed machinist who. He is working closely with Dr. Ian Brown in hardware development at Kinarm (BKIN Technologies Ltd.).

  • Ethan Heming PhD was a software developer and maintained the labs until October 2023 when he began managing facilities for the Connected Minds project.

  • Justin Peterson, was a software developer in the lab from 2007-2017. He graduated from the Engineering Systems and Computing program at the University of Guelph in 2005.

  • Jennifer Scott was a laboratory technician and then worked for Dr. Cook and Dr. Levy at Queen's in the CNS.

  • Jon Swaine was a computer programmer in the lab.

  • Emily Aleksa
  • Angel Benny Paul
  • Ben Blazevski
  • Alissa Brayley
  • Chloé Buso
  • Mackenzie Bone
  • Sherwin Chan
  • Jake Crookall
  • Kris Croome
  • Brent Davis
  • Tom Depew
  • Steve Dorrepaal
  • Cheryl Dunham
  • Thomas Ferguson
  • Sarah Gregor
  • Kevin Gu
  • Michelle Hapuarachi
  • Kirk Haunts
  • Diana Hsiang
  • Benjamin Hu
  • Quynh Huynh
  • Ali Jahed
  • Nik Jelicic
  • Hannah Julseth
  • Raul Kuchinad
  • Evan Kuo
  • Tony Kuo
  • Penny Letts
  • Alec Langlois
  • Jenny Li
  • Nicole Love
  • Jonathan Michaels
  • Mary Muir
  • Elishka Pek
  • Addison Rich
  • Sebastian Scott
  • Brock Sirko
  • Vidya Sri
  • Sharon Wong
  • Helen Xu
  • Lu Yang

Dr. Daichi Nozaki is currently at the Research Institute of National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities under a grant from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.