IRES Track 1: Physical State Estimation for Control Coordination and Behavior Monitoring

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Marquette University (MU) and the University of Genoa, Italy (UNIGE) will participate in an international student exchange to foster understanding of global healthcare issues and to cultivate the cultural competence required to develop biomedical engineering solutions to improve the health status of individuals around the world. The goals of this IRES project are to increase understanding of the relationships between motor behavior and the health status of individuals at risk of requiring costly healthcare services, and to develop technological solutions that can enhance the quality of life while also reducing medical costs. During their involvement, undergraduate and graduate students will learn important research skills, discover applied solutions for global healthcare problems, and develop international relationships. Student projects are designed to be performed in conjunction with faculty mentors from both universities. Upon completion of those projects, new technologies can be developed for application in the healthcare industry. As such, this International Research Experience for Students (IRES) project promotes the progress of science, advances the national health, and contributes to the development of a more globally competitive Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) workforce, with efforts to attract women, first-generation, and other underrepresented minority populations. The research projects will focus on motor control, motor coordination and overall motor activity in individuals afflicted with Multiple Sclerosis, stroke, and/or in the elderly population. Research projects will focus on developing technology aimed towards reducing tremor in those with Multiple Sclerosis; improving manual dexterity in those afflicted with stroke; and monitoring activities of daily living in order to assess/classify at-risk older adults. Student groups will prepare their research project under the guidance of MU faculty, they will then travel to UNIGE to collect data and begin data analysis under the mentorship of the collaborating UNIGE faculty. While at UNIGE they will also be immersed in Italian culture and the biomedical and computer engineering field so as to increase their cultural competence. Students will then return to MU to complete analysis and disseminate their results to scientists and the general community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.