UNCF-Merck Graduate Science Research Dissertation Fellowship

The project aims to improve partial-hand prosthetic control by applying concepts of neural engineering. During my time at the Center for Bionic Medicine (CBM), I have gained proficiency in the fundamental areas of electrophysiology, bioelectrical signal processing and pattern recognition. Through my courses and research experiences here, I have learned important principles of experimental design, statistical analysis and processing and analysis of bioelectric signals. The benefits of these skills reach far beyond the immediate scope of this particular project. Rather, I envision using these skills to study upper-and lower-limb neural prosthetic control and brain-machine interfaces. Improved biomedical signal processing can also extract clinically relevant information from biological signals to enable improved medical diagnosis. My research training will provide me with the solid engineering foundation and clinical framework upon which I can pursue these goals. Moreover, the application of these skills to medicine necessitates knowledge of both physiological systems and an understanding of the medical needs of a patient population. My training in the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) is also essential for achieving my goals. The MSTP program promotes the dual-nature of the MD/PhD degrees through classes such as “Topics in Translational Research”, and “MSTP Grand Rounds”. The clinical knowledge and skills I will acquire through this program will ensure that goals of my research continue to be clinically rooted.