Category: Trainee Achievement

Troy and Caleb pass the BME qualifying exam!

Congratulations to Troy Tully and Caleb Thomson for passing the biomedical engineering qualifying exam in neural engineering! As a part of the BME PhD program, students must demonstrate expertise of the subject matter within their track specialization (e.g., neural engineering). After completing the relevant coursework, they meet this requirement by passing an extensive 8-hour written qualifying exam. This is a long and grueling exam, but fortunately it is also typically the last written exam PhD students will ever take. After passing the exam, students who have completed their coursework are eligible to receive a milestone MS degree!

Three Additional Undergraduate Fellowships!

Congratulations to Abby, Jared and Rebecca for being awarded undergraduate research fellowships for Spring 2022! Their award-winning research projects are listed below:

  • Abby Harrison: Discriminability of Transcutaneous Sensory Feedback
  • Jared Zollinger: Surface-Electromyography Integrated Low-Cost Control System for Dexterous Bionic Arms
  • Rebecca Urban: Discriminability of Electrocutaneous Sensory Feedback

These prestigious research fellowships are awarded through the University of Utah's Office of Undergraduate Research. Congratulations to these super-star undergraduates!

Michael Paskett Is Joining Facebook Reality Labs!

Congratulations to Michael Paskett for transitioning to an exciting new job at Facebook Reality Labs! He will be working on the development of a wrist-based neural interface to intuitively control augmented and virtual realities. Michael will be defending his dissertation in PhD student in Biomedical Engineering this semester. As a member of Center for Neural Interfaces, Michael played in integral role in developing various technologies currently being utilized in our NeuroRobotics Lab. Three notable contributions we now use regularly are: 1) a bypass socket that allows healthy individuals to control and test myoelectric prostheses, 2) a method for quantifying cognitive load associated with prosthetic control & feedback strategies, and 3) an integrated device for vibrotactile feedback of robotic devices. Michaels new role at Facebook Reality Labs is timely; the Utah NeuroRobotics Lab recently received a $150,000 grant from Facebook Reality Labs to ensure neural interfaces for controlling virtual and augmented reality are inclusive to all users.

Troy Tully receives Society for Neuroscience Award!

Congratulations to Troy Tully for being awarded the Society for Neuroscience Trainee Professional Development Award. This prestigious award recognizes graduate students who demonstrate scientific merit and excellence in research. And Troy has certainly demonstrated excellence in research! In just his first year of graduate school Troy has already achieved two co-authored manuscripts, two co-authored conference proceedings, four national podium presentations, and one first-author manuscript in preparation. Way to go Troy!

Abby Citterman Awarded BMES Travel Award!

Congratulations to Abby Citterman for winning a $500 travel award to present her research at the Biomedical Engineering Society. Abby will be giving a podium presentation on her research, titled, "Low Frequencies Improve Intensity Discrimination for Electrocutaneous Artificial Sensory Feedback," in Orlando Florida this October. The travel award was provided from the University of Utah Office for Undergraduate Research.

Congratulations to Marshall Trout for passing his PhD qualifying exam!

Congratulations to Marshall Trout for passing his PhD qualifying exam! Students in the Electrical and Computer Engineering PhD program are required to review two research articles related to their research and then provide a written and oral report. The committee then asks about questions about the research field and their research direction. Marshall's competition of his qualifying exam signifies that he has the background knowledge and research foresight necessary to complete his PhD research. Congrats Marshall! We look forward to seeing your exciting research coming up.

Six New Undergraduate Research Fellowships!

Today we received a record number of undergraduate research fellowships! Starting this Fall, we will have a total of six undergraduate research fellows working the Utah NeuroRobotics Lab! The students and their award-winning research projects are listed below:

  • Abby Citterman, Biomedical Engineering: Compliance Discrimination through Sensory Feedback
  • Elaine Wong, Electrical Engineering: Wireless Miniature Wearable Surface Electromyography Device for Intuitive Control of Smart Technology
  • Abby Harrison, Biomedical Engineering: Discriminability of Transcutaneous Sensory Feedback
  • Gabriel Santana, Computer Engineering: Data Augmentation of Electromyography Data to Improve the Performance of Machine-Learning Algorithms for Decoding Motor Intent
  • Jared Zollinger, Biomedical Engineering: Surface-Electromyography Integrated Low-Cost Control System for Dexterous Bionic Arms
  • Kennedy Powell, Biomedical Engineering: Robotic Supernumerary Digit to Explore Biological Control of External Devices and Shared Human-Machine Dexterity

These prestigious research fellowships are awarded through the University of Utah's Office of Undergraduate Research. Congratulations to our super-star undergraduates!

NeuroRobotics Undergraduate Rebecca Urban Selected as Engineering Ambassador!

Congratulations to Rebecca Urban for being admitted to the highly prestigious Engineering Ambassadors Program at the University of Utah. Engineering Ambassadors are the student representatives of the College of Engineering. They are motivated students who represent the College of Engineering at recruitment, outreach, alumni, and development events. This is a highly selective program as ambassadors work directly with the Dean’s Office in the College of Engineering. Rebecca is a well-rounded individual with a love for the University of Utah and the College of Engineering! She has strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work independently and in a team environment. Congratulations Rebecca!

Three Undergraduate Researchers Awarded Summer Fellowships!

NeuroRobotics Lab Undergraduates Elaine Wong, Rebecca Urban and Kennedy Powell received research fellowships for Summer 2021 through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. This competitive research fellowship provides a $1,200 stipend and educational programming for undergraduate researcher to carry out a project of their own under the supervision of a faculty member. The awarded proposals were:

  • Elaine Wong, "Wireless Miniature Wearable Surface Electromyography Device for Intuitive Control of Smart Technology"
  • Rebecca Urban, "Discriminability of Electrocutaneous Sensory Feedback"
  • Kennedy Powell, "Robotic Supernumerary Digit to Explore Biological Control of External Devices and Shared Human-Machine Dexterity"

Abby Citterman wins first place presentation!

Congratulations to Abby Citterman for winning first place for her poster presentation at the Utah Biomedical Engineering Conference! Abby's research explores how electrocutaneous sensory feedback is perceived - providing insight into the neural basis of touch and guiding the development of novel sensorized bionic devices. You can watch her award-winning presentation below!