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Dr. Carolyn Emery is a Professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary, with joint appointments in Pediatrics and Community Health Sciences at the Cumming School of Medicine. She holds leadership roles as Chair of the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre (an International Olympic Committee Research Centre) and the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute. Her affiliations include the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, and O’Brien Institute for Public Health. Dr. Emery’s education includes a BScPT from Queen’s University (1988), MSc in Epidemiology from the University of Calgary (1999), and PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Alberta (2004). Her research focuses on injury prevention in youth sports, concussion, and pediatric rehabilitation, aiming to reduce long-term health consequences such as osteoarthritis and post-concussion syndrome. She leads major grants including CIHR’s “SHRed Injuries” and NFL-funded concussion surveillance programs. Her research interests emphasize practical interventions for injury prevention, including neuromuscular training and policy changes. Recent work explores concussion outcomes in adolescents, biomechanical injury mechanisms, and global sport safety initiatives. She has published extensively on topics like sport-related musculoskeletal injuries, concussion management, and the epidemiology of youth sports. Dr. Emery has received over 20 awards, including the Royal Society of Canada Fellowship, Killam Professorship, and CIHR Canada Research Chair. Her work bridges clinical practice, policy, and community engagement to enhance public health outcomes in sports and youth recreation. Her lab, the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre, collaborates internationally to develop evidence-based strategies for injury prevention. Current projects include evaluating the impact of tackle laws in rugby, head acceleration in wrestling, and long-term consequences of pediatric concussions.

• Injury Prevention
• Concussion Research
• Pediatric Rehabilitation
• +3 more

Maja J Matarić is the Chan Soon-Shiong Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering, with courtesy appointments in Neuroscience and Pediatrics. She serves as founding director of the USC Robotics and Autonomous Systems Center, co-director of the USC Robotics Research Lab, and Principal Scientist at Google DeepMind. Previously, she held leadership roles as USC's interim Vice President of Research (2020-2021) and Vice Dean for Research (2006-2019). Her educational background includes: PhD in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence from MIT (1994) MS in Computer Science from MIT (1990) BS in Computer Science from University of Kansas (1987) Matarić pioneers Socially Assistive Robotics (SAR) , a field her lab named, focusing on human-robot interaction that provides assistance through social rather than physical support. Her research targets critical health and wellness challenges including post-stroke rehabilitation, autism spectrum disorder therapy, cognitive exercises for Alzheimer's patients, ADHD academic support, and mental health interventions. She develops systems modeling user engagement, personality, and motivation, with extensive real-world deployments in schools, rehabilitation centers, and homes. Analysis of her recent publications reveals dominant themes in cognitive health robotics (2025 CHI paper on LLM-powered elder care), pediatric assistive technology (2025 IDC speech therapy review), and adaptive preference modeling (2025 HRI contrastive learning work). Her research consistently bridges machine learning with human-centered design for vulnerable populations. Major scientific recognition includes: ACM Athena Lecturer Award (2024) ACM Eugene L. Lawler Humanitarian Award (2024) ACM Fellow (2020) Presidential Mentoring Award (2011) Multiple society fellowships (AAAS, IEEE, AAAI) As a dedicated mentor, Matarić has championed underrepresented groups through CRA-W, placing numerous women in faculty positions. She leads USC Viterbi's K-12 STEM Outreach Program serving low-income Los Angeles schools and authored The Robotics Prime for student education. Her research has secured significant funding enabling real-world technology transfer, with documented impact in rehabilitation centers and homes through deployable SAR systems. Her Robotics Research Lab at USC drives innovation in embodied AI, with current projects spanning LLM-integrated elder care robots, ADHD academic companions, and autism therapy systems. The lab emphasizes co-design with end-users and rigorous real-world validation across diverse populations.

• Socially Assistive Robotics
• Human-Robot Interaction
• Assistive Technology
• +7 more

Dr. Catherine Legault serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University and Co-director of the Stroke Programme at the McGill University Health Centre. She is a neurologist at The Neuro (Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital), a bilingual academic healthcare institution and part of McGill's Neuroscience Mission. Her educational background includes: Medical degree from McGill University (2011) Internship in Internal Medicine at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital Neurology Residency at The Neuro (2012-2015) with chief residency (2014-2015) Vascular Neurology fellowship at Stanford University NIH StrokeNet fellowship Dr. Legault's clinical research focuses on translational stroke care, emphasizing acute interventions, rehabilitation innovation, and systems optimization. Her work integrates wearable technology with traditional stroke recovery methods while addressing post-stroke cognitive and visual impairments. She actively develops patient-centered educational frameworks and investigates hemodynamic interventions like induced hypertension. As principal investigator for multiple stroke clinical trials at The Neuro's Clinical Research Unit, she bridges bench-to-bedside research. Her teaching spans emergency consultations, bedside clinical supervision, and outpatient stroke clinics for residents and medical students. Through multidisciplinary collaboration in the Stroke Programme, Dr. Legault advances integrated care models that connect acute treatment with long-term rehabilitation, focusing on measurable functional outcomes and healthcare system efficiency.

• Neurology
• Stroke Research
• acute stroke management
• +9 more

Adrien Desjardins is a Professor at the University of British Columbia, jointly appointed in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering within the Faculty of Applied Science. He joined UBC in 2024 after serving as a Full Professor at University College London from 2019-2024, following 13 years on faculty there. His educational background includes a B.Sc. from UBC (2001) and a Ph.D. from MIT and Harvard University (2007). Dr. Desjardins' research program focuses on interdisciplinary development of imaging and sensing modalities and autonomous robotics with marine and biomedical applications. His work integrates photonics, ultrasound, machine learning, and robotics to create innovative diagnostic tools and sensing systems, particularly in optical coherence tomography, diffuse optical spectroscopy, and photoacoustic imaging. His publication record reveals an evolution from foundational neuroimaging work (2001) toward increasingly sophisticated optical systems culminating in breakthroughs like ultrasensitive optical microresonators for ultrasound sensing (2017), demonstrating consistent innovation in biomedical optics with growing emphasis on machine learning integration and real-world applications. His scientific contributions have been recognized through prestigious awards: Research Chair from the Royal Academy of Engineering Healthcare Technologies Challenge Award from EPSRC Starting grants from ERC, EPSRC, and Royal Society World Economic Forum Young Scientist (2015) UCL Provost Teaching Prize (2013) Dr. Desjardins actively mentors graduate students and secures major research funding through competitive grants, with current openings for January/September 2025 intakes. His program involves close industry collaboration indicating strong translational focus, though specific lab names aren't mentioned. The interdisciplinary nature of his work suggests teams spanning engineering, computer science, and medical disciplines working on next-generation imaging systems for healthcare and marine exploration.

• Imaging and sensing
• Robotics
• Machine learning
• +6 more

Christopher M EARLS is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Université de Montréal's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. He specializes in forensic psychology, psychopathology, and behavioral studies with a focus on sexual delinquency and juvenile prostitution. His research explores the intersections of psychopathy, criminal behavior, and mental health comorbidities. He teaches courses including Psychopathology: Introduction across undergraduate programs in psychology, social sciences, and cognitive neuroscience. His academic contributions span over two decades, with notable work on psychopathy assessment, parenting practices in non-criminal populations, and sexual behavior conditioning. Education Affiliations: Université de Montréal (primary) Teaching Programs: Baccalauréat en psychologie, Neuroscience cognitive, Social Work programs Dr. EARLS has directed 10+ theses and mémoires since 1998, focusing on forensic psychology topics like sexual delinquency correlates and psychopathy measurement validity. His work bridges clinical psychology with sociocultural factors, particularly in marginalized populations like sex workers and juvenile offenders. Research Highlights: Clinical assessment tools comparison (paper vs. digital psychopathy scales) Gender differences in psychopathy expression Impact of childhood trauma on sexual interest development Though no formal awards are listed, his extensive publication record reflects sustained contributions to forensic and clinical psychology research.

• Sexual Delinquency
• Juvenile Prostitution
• Psychopathy
• +5 more

Mikhail (Misha) Belkin is a Professor at the Halicioglu Data Science Institute (HDSI) at the University of California San Diego , with an affiliated appointment in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering . He is also an Amazon Scholar , reflecting his impactful industry collaboration. Since January 2024, he has served as the Editor-in-Chief of the SIAM Journal on Mathematics of Data Science (SIMODS) . Research Interests: Belkin's research centers on the theoretical foundations of machine learning, particularly the mathematical understanding of modern deep learning. His work investigates interpolation , over-parameterization , and feature learning in neural networks. He is renowned for introducing the double descent risk curve, which reconciles classical bias-variance trade-offs with the success of overfitted models. His recent work identifies the Average Gradient Outer Product (AGOP) as a fundamental mechanism of feature learning, applicable across architectures like CNNs and transformers. Scientific Contributions and Trends: His recent publications, appearing in Science , PNAS , and NeurIPS , demonstrate a strong trend toward unifying theories of generalization and optimization in over-parameterized systems. He explores how interpolating models can be statistically optimal, how gradient descent converges in non-convex landscapes via the PL* condition, and how kernel methods can be enhanced to perform feature learning. ACM Fellow (2023) Editor-in-Chief, SIAM Journal on Mathematics of Data Science (2024–present) Advising and Grants: Belkin actively mentors students and collaborators such as Adityanarayanan Radhakrishnan , Daniel Beaglehole , and Chaoyue Liu , who are frequent co-authors. He is a Principal Investigator (PI) in the Collaboration on the Theoretical Foundations of Deep Learning , funded by the NSF and Simons Foundation. He is also an external collaborator with the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Center at the Broad Institute and part of the NSF-funded TILOS AI Institute . Laboratories and Teams: While not explicitly named, his research group at UCSD is deeply involved in theoretical machine learning, focusing on the intersection of statistics, optimization, and deep learning. His work often involves large-scale collaborations and is closely tied to initiatives like SIMODS and TILOS.

• Machine Learning
• Deep Learning
• Theoretical Foundations of AI
• +11 more

Jeffrey Schall is a Full Professor of Biology and Program Director of the Visual Neurophysiology Centre at York University. He holds the Canada Research Chair in Translating Neuroscience. His research focuses on neural mechanisms underlying behavior, integrating neurophysiological and computational approaches across multiple scales. Schall is a core member of the Centre for Vision Research and the Canada First Research Excellence Fund Connected Minds initiative. Education: PhD in Anatomy (University of Utah School of Medicine, 1986), postdoctoral training at MIT. Awards include the Troland Research Award, Sloan Foundation Fellowship, and AAAS Fellowship. He served as Vision Science Society President in 2019. Research interests include visual attention, executive control, error monitoring, and translational neuroscience applications in law. His work bridges basic science with applied studies in clinical populations like schizophrenia patients. Collaborative projects involve EEG/MEG analysis, cortical microcircuitry modeling, and neuromodulation techniques. Teaching: YU_NRSC 2100 Systems, Behavioral, and Cognitive Neuroscience. Active in interdisciplinary initiatives linking neuroscience with legal systems through scholarship and policy engagement.

• Visual Neurophysiology
• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• +5 more

David Vocadlo is a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Molecular Biology & Biochemistry at Simon Fraser University (SFU), holding the Canada Research Chair in Chemical Biology. His research focuses on Chemical Glycobiology, investigating carbohydrate-processing enzymes and developing chemical tools to study glycan roles in health and disease. His lab explores O-GlcNAc signaling, neurodegenerative disorders (e.g., Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s), and enzyme inhibitors for therapeutic applications. Education: PhD from University of British Columbia (UBC), followed by a CIHR postdoctoral fellowship at UC Berkeley. Key roles include E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellow and Royal Society Fellow. Research highlights include O-GlcNAcase inhibitors for neuroprotection, glycan structure-function relationships, and enzyme activity imaging tools. Collaborates globally with experts in glycobiology and employs cutting-edge techniques like chemical synthesis, mass spectrometry, and live-cell imaging. Awards: Distinguished Professor title, Canada Research Chair, Royal Society Fellowship. Active in training researchers through SFU’s graduate programs, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches. Lab members work on topics ranging from enzyme mechanisms to disease modeling.

• Bioorganic Chemistry
• Chemical Biology
• Glycobiology
• +3 more

Arash Arami is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo, cross-appointed in Systems Design Engineering. He directs the Neuromechanics and Assistive Robotics Laboratory and maintains affiliations with Waterloo Robohub, the Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology, Waterloo AI institute, and KITE institute at Toronto Rehab Institute. He earned his Doctorate in Electrical Engineering from EPFL (2014), Master of Science from University of Tehran (2009), and Bachelor of Science from University of Tabriz (2006), all in Control Engineering. His research in Assistive Robotics and Rehabilitation Engineering integrates Machine Learning with Neuromechanics to develop intelligent systems for human movement analysis. Key focus areas include exoskeleton control algorithms, wearable sensor systems, and neural control modeling for rehabilitation applications. Recent publications demonstrate interdisciplinary work spanning robotics, biomedical engineering, and materials science, with emphasis on real-time human locomotion prediction, exoskeleton-human interaction, and data-driven health monitoring solutions. Dr. Arami serves as Chair of the NSERC Scholarship Committee (2021-2023) and mentors graduate students through the Mechatronics Exchange Study program. His teaching includes core courses in control systems, robot manipulators, and biomechanical engineering. The Neuromechanics and Assistive Robotics Laboratory fosters collaborations with clinical partners at Toronto Rehab Institute, focusing on translating robotic innovations into practical rehabilitation tools through interdisciplinary teamwork.

• Assistive Robotics
• Human-Robot Interaction
• Machine Learning
• +6 more

Dr. Frank Rudzicz is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University. His research lies at the intersection of artificial intelligence, natural language processing, and healthcare, with a focus on developing machine learning systems that improve clinical decision-making, patient outcomes, and accessibility in medicine. He holds a BSc from Concordia University (2004), an MEng from McGill University (2006), and a PhD from the University of Toronto (2011). His research interests include Natural Language Processing, Machine Learning, Healthcare, Speech Technologies, Explainable AI, and Fairness in ML. Dr. Rudzicz's recent publications span a wide range of topics, including Alzheimer's detection through speech analysis, surgical outcome prediction, mental health monitoring, privacy in AI, and the application of large language models in clinical settings. His work consistently emphasizes ethical AI, patient privacy, and real-world clinical integration. He has received several awards, including a Best Paper award at EMNLP 2020, a Best Student Paper award at ICASSP 2021, and the ISCA Best Student Paper award in 2013. His research has been published in top-tier journals such as Nature Scientific Reports , JAMA Network Open , IEEE Access , and Frontiers in Human Neuroscience , as well as leading conferences including NeurIPS, ACL, ICML, and Interspeech. Dr. Rudzicz supervises a dynamic research group working on AI for health, with active projects in voice-based diagnostics, ambient clinical documentation, explainable AI for surgery, and wearable-based monitoring for chronic diseases. He collaborates widely across disciplines, including with clinicians, neuroscientists, ethicists, and public health experts. He is also involved in major initiatives such as the Genetics Navigator study and Bridge2AI-Voice, aiming to build ethically sourced, diverse biomedical datasets. His lab actively explores the societal implications of AI in healthcare, including fairness, trust, and resistance to malicious fine-tuning.

• Natural Language Processing
• Machine Learning
• Healthcare
• +12 more

Dr. Frances Chen is a Professor and Area Coordinator in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia (UBC), located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Musqueam People. She holds a PhD from Stanford University (2009). Her research integrates health psychology, social psychology, and neuroendocrinology to explore how social experiences influence mental and physical health. Key areas include the physiological impacts of loneliness, social support, and hormonal changes during puberty on adolescent development. Education: PhD, Psychology, Stanford University, 2009 Research Focus: Dr. Chen investigates how social interactions 'get under the skin' through studies on loneliness, stress, conflict negotiation, and hormonal mechanisms. Her work emphasizes interventions to enhance social connection and reduce health disparities. Recent Article Trends: Recent publications highlight interdisciplinary approaches, including genetic influences on depression, effects of near-infrared lighting on cognition, and longitudinal studies on adolescent hormonal contraceptive use. Her work bridges basic science and applied health outcomes. Awards & Grants: Michael Smith Health Research BC C2 Award (2022) Killam Faculty Research Fellowship (2019) Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund Grant (2025) SSHRC Prosociality Project Funding (2023) Lab & Mentorship: Director of the Social Health Lab, she mentors graduate and undergraduate students, prioritizing equity and inclusion. Recent lab achievements include studies on teen health development and interventions to improve student success in psychology programs. Lab Initiatives: UBC Teen Health and Development Study (longitudinal hormonal/mental health tracking) NIR lighting health impact research (collaborative interdisciplinary project) Prosociality 'in the Wild' SSHRC project

• Health Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Neuroendocrinology
• +6 more

Gordon Geoffrey J. is a Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, specializing in Machine Learning , Artificial Intelligence , and Computer Science . His research spans Reinforcement Learning , Domain Adaptation , Graph-based Planning , and Relational Learning , with significant contributions to Adversarial Learning , Deep Learning Dynamics , and Mobile Sensor Networks . He has pioneered algorithms like ARA* and Anytime Dynamic A* for efficient planning under constraints. Key research areas: Transfer Learning , Bayesian Knowledge Tracing , Multi-agent Systems , Database Optimization His work has been cited thousands of times across foundational topics in AI and robotics, demonstrating sustained impact in algorithm design and applications to complex systems.

• Machine Learning
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Science
• +5 more

Suresh Krishna is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine. His research focuses on the neurophysiological and computational basis of sensory processing, attention, and eye movements, with applications to brain-machine interfaces and human health. He works with human subjects, non-human primates, and open datasets using in-vivo electrophysiology, eye-tracking, and computational modeling. Research interests include visual attention mechanisms, saccadic eye movement control, neural coding of motion perception, and the interplay between attention and decision-making. His work bridges basic neuroscience with translational applications such as improving neural prosthetics and understanding perceptual disorders. Recent work highlights how neural remapping processes during saccades underlie spatial perception, and how attention modulates neural activity patterns in visual cortex. The lab's publications reveal critical insights into the temporal dynamics of attentional shifts and their neural substrates, particularly in areas MT and MST. Dr. Krishna's team also investigates auditory temporal processing in the inferior colliculus, exploring correlations between neuronal responses to sound modulation. Their findings contribute to understanding how sensory systems encode temporal information across modalities. Research is conducted in the M2B3 Lab (http://m2b3.lab.mcgill.ca), which integrates experimental and computational approaches to study brain mechanisms underlying perception and action. No specific awards are listed, but ongoing work involves major contributions to primate neurophysiology and translational neuroscience.

• Neurophysiology
• Computational Neuroscience
• Vision Science
• +5 more

Professor Dirk Bernhardt-Walther is an academic at the University of Toronto, serving as Program Director of the Cognitive Science Program and Department of Psychology . He investigates neural and computational mechanisms underlying high-level sensory perception, focusing on real-world scenes, mid-level vision, and visual aesthetics. Education: PhD in Computation and Neural Systems (Caltech, 2006), M.Phil (University of Cambridge) Research Focus: His lab employs fMRI, MEG, EEG , and GAN-generated stimuli to study scene categorization, perceptual organization, and aesthetic processing. Recent work explores curvature perception, emotion representation in scenes, and neural dissociations between computational and subjective visual metrics. Laboratory Members: The Bernhardt-Walther Lab includes PhD students like Gaeun Son (scene perception), Charlotte Leferink (scene representation), and Dela Farzanfar (aesthetic processing), alongside postdocs and collaborators. Advising: Supervises graduate students in projects combining computational modeling, psychophysics, and neuroimaging, particularly those with backgrounds in computer science or cognitive neuroscience.

• Visual Perception
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Scene Categorization
• +5 more

Milos Popovic is a Professor and Director at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, and serves as Senior Scientist and Director of Research at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute (KITE), University Health Network. He holds the Toronto Rehab Chair in Spinal Cord Injury Research and Neural Engineering and co-leads the Centre for Research in Advanced Neural Implant Applications (CRANIA). His leadership spans academic, clinical, and translational research domains in neuroengineering and rehabilitation. His research focuses on neurorehabilitation, neuroprosthetics, functional electrical stimulation (FES), brain-machine interfaces, and assistive technologies . He develops physiological control systems and therapeutic robotics to restore motor function after spinal cord injury and stroke. His work integrates biomechanics, signal processing, and human-machine interfaces to innovate rehabilitative solutions. Dr. Popovic's recent publications emphasize electrical neuromodulation, FES therapy for motor recovery, deep brain stimulation for cognitive deficits, and wearable/implantable technologies . The articles reflect a strong trend toward closed-loop systems, translational research, and interdisciplinary innovation in neuroengineering and rehabilitation. Swiss National Science Foundation Technology Transfer Award - 1st place (1997) Engineering Medal for Research and Development, Professional Engineers of Ontario (2008) Elected to the College of Fellows, American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (2011) 1st Prize and Best Intellectual Property Award, TiEQuest Business Venture Competition (2012) Morris (Mickey) Milner Award for Assistive Technologies (2013) University of Toronto Inventor of the Year Award (2013) University Health Network’s Inventor of the Year Award (2015) Dr. Popovic has secured significant research funding and leads the Neural Engineering and Therapeutics team at KITE. He co-founded MyndTec Inc. and the Canadian National Spinal Cord Injury Conference, demonstrating strong mentorship, innovation, and national impact. He advises graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in biomedical engineering and rehabilitation sciences. He leads the Rehabilitation Engineering Laboratory and the Neural Engineering and Therapeutics Team at KITE, fostering collaboration across engineering, neuroscience, and clinical rehabilitation. His lab develops advanced neurotechnologies with a focus on clinical translation and commercialization.

• Neurorehabilitation
• Neuroprosthetics
• Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES)
• +12 more