Biomechanics on our Minds

BOOM BOOM BOOM! We are releasing our third episode in the mobility, accessibility, and design series! We met with Amos Winter, a professor at MIT who taught us a lot about how he uses design in his research, and does need-finding “on the ground”, traveling all over the world to talk to users and learn their stories first-hand. Follow Amos! Website: gear.mit.edu Twitter: @amoswinter TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/amos_winter_the_cheap_all_terrain_wheelchair?language=en Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

This episode features an inspiring conversation with Josh Halstead, an activist, designer, and author, who shares their perspectives and expertise on design pedagogy, co-design, crip time, and many other ideas. He also brings the unique perspective of how these ideas have played out in their own experiences living with a disability, which has led to truly impactful innovations. We are so happy to share our second episode in the mobility, accessibility, and design series! If you didn’t listen to our first episode with Professor Kat Steele on universal design and accessibility, make sure to check it out. Follow Josh! Twitter: @dis_aspora Instagram: @cripjoy Website: https://disaspora.com/ [not updated] Three Paradigms of Disability & Design: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzL8AY03KUM Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

We are always trying to improve BOOM and we couldn’t do it without you. Thanks to your survey feedback, we created our first-ever BOOM series where we focus on one topic for a series of interviews. The theme of this series is mobility, accessibility, and design! Our first episode features Professor Kat Steele, who is at the University of Washington and leading her own reimagining mobility series with the community. We discuss her own research that employs principles of universal design and accessibility, and learn how she continually adapts everything from her writing process to her classroom design to be more inclusive of people of all abilities. Learn more: Steele Lab: https://steelelab.me.uw.edu/ Reimagining Mobility Series: https://create.uw.edu/join-us-reimagining-mobility/ Project Sidewalk: https://sidewalk-spgg.cs.washington.edu/ (not open sidewalks as we stated in the episode) Access map: https://www.accessmap.io/ Accessibility courses: https://sbctc.instructure.com/courses/1698678 Making presentations more accessible: https://sbctc.instructure.com/courses/1698678 & https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3085564 Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

We had an amazing conversation with Kharma Foucher who talks about how to make research patient-centric and integrate biomechanics and clinical outcomes. She also shares her experiences being part of teams that are focusing on inclusion and diversity in science, as well as what it means to her to be a good mentor. She encourages others to focus on their strengths and helps support them in areas where they might want to improve. We also learn how she stays resilient and keeps it moving. Follow Kharma! Twitter: @KharmaMDPhD, Instagram: @drdrfoucher Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

In this episode, we were lucky to have a conversation with N’Dea Irvin-Choy. N’Dea is a Biomedical Engineering Ph.D. Candidate at the University of Delaware, working on impactful translational research in women’s health. N’Dea talks about overcoming the challenges of being part of an underrepresented group in STEM and how we can be supportive allies. She also shares some of her Kween pro tips, teaching us how to embrace our true Kween. We know you'll find this episode really inspired and ready to let your unique light shine and help others do the same!

The guest on this episode is Dr. Glen Lichtwark. Glen is a Professor in the School of Human Movement Studies at the University of Queensland and is a member of the International Society of Biomechanics Council. He shares his research on muscle and tendon mechanics, locomotion, modeling and simulation, robotics, and “all things nerdy," including his team's recent work on intrinsic foot muscles and how they contribute to our forward propulsion. We also talk about how basic science and translational research can inform each other and how to have an effective collaboration between academia and industry. Follow Glen on Twitter: @GlenLichtwark Follow BOOM on Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Follow BOOM on Instagram and Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds BOOM Official website and shop: biomechanicsonourminds.com Contact us: biomechanicsonourminds@gmail.com

How can we be facilitators of learning in STEM for young black girls? Learn from Black Girls Do STEM, which does just that. In this bonus episode, we talk with the founder of BGDSTEM, Cynthia Chapple, as she shares how they designed STEM programs for young black girls rooted in scholarship, training, empowerment, equity, and mentorship. She teaches us the importance of knowing your why and listening to the stories of the people you are trying to serve. We hope this episode is a reminder of the responsibility we have in creating a more and diverse equitable future in STEM. We can take action today - volunteer with or donate to BGDSTEM or learn from their experiences to become a better facilitator of STEM knowledge in whatever capacity you can. Follow Black Girls Do STEM! Twitter: @BGDSTEM Instagram: @BGDSTEM Facebook: Black Girls Do STEM Website: bgdstem.com Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

In this episode, we learn about how to conduct a good peer review with Dr. Jess Fiedorowicz! Dr. Fiedorowicz is the Head and Chief of the Department of Mental Health at the Ottawa Hospital and a Professor and Senior Research Chair in Adult Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Ottawa. He is also the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Psychosomatic Research. He shares helpful tips on the peer review process as well as reinforced why it is so important and should be part of our role as scientists. We also learned about his really interesting work on bipolar disorder and he shared some of his advice on prioritizing by passion. We really enjoyed this interview and think you will too! Follow BOOM! Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM Instagram: @biomechanicsonourminds Facebook: @biomechanicsonourminds

This Student Voices episode is hosted by Kaleb Burch, Kayla Pariser, and Luke Nigro, who are all members of Dr. Jill Higginson's Neuromuscular Biomechanics Lab at the University of Delaware. In this episode, our hosts share experiences and lessons learned in both adapting to COVID and advocating for their fellow students. Learn more about … The Neuromuscular Biomechanics Lab (https://sites.udel.edu/higginsonlab/) Advocacy/Mentorship Groups at UD: MEGA (https://sites.udel.edu/mega/) and EmPOWER (https://sites.udel.edu/coe-empower/) Follow BOOM on Twitter: @BiomechanicsOOM FollowBOOM in Instagram: @BiomechanicsOnOurMinds

We are excited to start the year off by talking about self-work with life coach Casey Everhart. We dive into intention setting, mindset, and giving yourself space for self-work! The only way we can help others is if we can first love and help ourselves. It can be hard to dedicate time for the work we need to do for this, but we talk about small, tangible ways we can work towards living our best lives. We hope this episode helps you start off the year on the right foot and remember to show up for yourself - you deserve it! Follow Casey on Instagram: @CaseyRoseCoaching Casey’s website: https://www.caseyrosecoaching.com/ Follow BOOM on Twitter: @biomechanicsOOM