• November 28, 2016, 4:00 p.m.,
  • 117A Surge Building,
  • Dr. Brooke Flammang ,
  • New Jersey Institute of Technology,
  • Faculty Host: Dr. Kevin Wang

Abstract:

Collaborative efforts in biology and engineering have resulted in many exciting bioinspired technologies in the past decade or so; however, the goal of these collaborations are typically focused on building a device that either loosely resembles a biological organism or optimizes a desirable performance feature. These new technologies are extremely important, yet an additional benefit of bioinspired robotics is often overlooked – the robotic model organism. A properly validated robotic model is an essential tool for understanding the limits of biological behavior and can reliably and repeatedly perform behaviors that a living organism may not choose. Perhaps the most useful role of robotic models is their ability to be simplified, allowing biologists to examine simple variables that make up complex physiologies and hierarchical structures and to address questions of broad evolutionary importance.

More information about Dr. Flammang's work can be found at  

https://web.njit.edu/~flammang/