Projects

The purpose of this grant is to identify the mechanisms responsible for generating photophobia in patients who have suffered mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Currently, estimates indicate that this painful condition persists in about 60% of those who suffered from blast-related traumatic brain injury and 30% of those who suffered non-blast-related concussive injuries.

This Science of Learning Collaborative Network brings together researchers and experts from the Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, University of Bamberg (Germany), Columbia University and Emory University to investigate how the visual art of drawing can enhance learning. Underlying learning principles and neural mechanisms will be considered, and how these can be harnessed for real-life learning enhancement. Though humans have been drawing for at least 30,000 years, little is understood about brain processes involved in this activity.

Macular degeneration affects the central retina, often causing asymmetrical damage to the two eyes. How does this asymmetrical loss affect stereopsis — the percept of depth generated by the small separation of image features in the two eyes?

3D printing is increasingly used in STEM education. How can it be made usable by students who are blind or visually impaired?

The purpose of this research study is to use the spectral electroretinogram (ERG) to deteremine how the retinal mechanisms of sufferers from abnormal light sensitivity due to head injury differ from those without abnormal light sensitivity.

This page (currently under construction) accompanies a work-in-progress poster at the 2020 Eurohaptics meeting.

Audiom is a tool that allows blind and visually impaired individuals to view maps completely in audio. It is a web component and can be embedded into any webpage, similar to Google Maps. It allows non-visual use of route, landmark, and survey knowledge, which is the critical information needed for navigation.

Bilateral field loss due to maculopathy creates a scotoma that extends in depth — a volume scotoma. Morevoer the size of the scotoma depends on whether observers turn their eyes to track a target as it comes closer. This project investigates how the volume scotoma affects the ability to track oncoming targets in these individuals, and in controls with a simulated volume scotoma.