Research Skills

Creating specialized equipment

In the course of my research I often find myself needing specialized parts that are not readily available. In such situations, I am able to create these specialized parts myself using shop tools including a CNC, laser cutter, mill, 3D printer, chop saw, band saw, and drill press. I am especially adept at making aquatic tanks of different sizes and shapes. With the added use of motors, custom electronics, and cameras, I can perform experiments that reduce observers bias by separating the experimenter from the experimental subject in space.

Programming and 3d modeling

I am adept with programming in both R and Matlab. I have used these programs to run models, operate machinery, and do data analyses. I have also used two separate 3D modeling software programs to design specialized equipment needed to complete research projects. Using these 3D modeling programs, AutoDesk Inventor and Google SketchUp, I can virtually create specialized parts, minimizing the use of potentially expensive materials in prototyping.

Video analysis

Because much of my research is focused on locomotion and behavior, I have become adept at analyzing videos. Using ImageJ, Matlab, and homemade code developed by members of the McHenry lab, I can determine the shape, size, position, velocity, acceleration, and rotation of experimental animals in a video. I can use these measurements to gain deeper insight into the subject's behavior and locomotory capabilities.

Animal Husbandry

I have over 5 years of experience in animal husbandry of marine fish and invertebrates and over 3 years experience raising freshwater fish. This included many challenges. For example, I worked to raise Aurelia from the sedentary stage through their medusa phase without the use of a kreisel. I have extensive experience collecting specimens from the field and successfully acclimating them and maintaining them in the lab. I have 1 year of experience raising and maintaining Drosophila.
I have limited experience raising cricket, mealworm, and cockroach colonies as well.

Creating physical models

I create physical models of structures in my biomechanical work. These help to test hypotheses about function and to test custom equipment. These models can sometimes be made with very simple materials. To the left is a video of one such model I created of the head of a marine worm to test how simple movements like wiggling in a particular direction and everting its pharynx would appear on a pressure sensor trace.

Field investigations

Many of my investigations take me into the field. I have experience working in muddy estuarian environments, the rocky intertidal, as well as open ocean and creeks. I have experience on small- and medium-sized crafts, and am a certified diver. Field work often involves multiple researchers and I have led several such groups in the course of my work.