Derek Chin – Lab Manager
Derek got into neuroscience after being interested in the biomechanics of movement in drummers. His main area of research aims to better understand force fluctuations in the neuromuscular system through measures of statistical entropy as well as sex-based differences in tendon mechanics. In his research, he hopes to learn more about the regularity of force fluctuations and their underlying contributors. Derek’s future academic interests involve the field of biomedical engineering and his goals in the lab reflect this. He hopes that his particular interest in prosthetic limbs will have him ending up on the research and development end of prosthetic technology and other biomedical aids. During his spare time, you will pretty much always find him either in the gym or playing board games at home. Fun fact, Derek used to play the drums professionally in various Vancouver-based studios before pivoting to academia and research.
Parisa Alaei – PhD Candidate
Parisa is a fourth-year PhD student in Kinesiology with a background in Physiotherapy (B.Sc.) and Sports Physiotherapy (M.Sc.). Her research focuses on sex and age-related differences in neuromuscular science and the full spectrum of motor control, from functional abilities to the underlying physiological aspects like motor unit activity, which serves as the final common pathway in movement control. In her PhD thesis, she is specifically investigating these processes in individuals with Parkinson’s disease, aiming to better understand how this neurological condition impacts motor control and the underlying mechanisms that drive movement and functional ability. Through her work, she seeks to explore how dopaminergic medication influences neuromuscular properties and motor function, with the goal of contributing to advancements in improving mobility and quality of life for those living with Parkinson’s Disease.
Shamim Noroozi – PhD Student
Shamim is a thi
rd-year Ph.D. student in Biomedical Engineering. Shamim received both her B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Biomedical Engineering with a focus on medical image processing and robotic rehabilitation during her bachelor’s and master’s projects, respectively. During PhD, she focuses on fall risk prediction and prevention in older adults and people with Parkinson’s Disease. Her PhD project aims to employ machine learning techniques to predict the risk of falls in older adults and people with Parkinson’s Disease. She is also interested in applying wearable sensors to assess fall risk and the integration of these sensors with machine learning algorithms. A fun fact about Shamim is that she never gets tired of learning about Artificial Intelligence and believes that everyone should be kind to AI models using words such as “please” and “thank you” when asking for things.
Cori Calkins – PhD Student
Cori is a PhD student in Kinesiology. She really started to think about how the body moves from her gymnastics background. She is interested in research that involves training modalities such as action observation (i.e., viewing of a physical task) and motor imagery (i.e., the mental rehearsal of a physical task) and how these training modalities can impact motor performance across the lifespan. When she is not at school, she enjoys coaching gymnastics and crocheting.
Lani Campbell – HES Honors Undergraduate Student
Lani is a 4th year Bachelor of Human Kinetics honours student hoping to pursue her M.Sc. in neuromuscular physiology next fall. Her research interests involve looking into sex-specific and age differences in motor unit properties and force steadiness. Her current research is looking at the influence of the menstrual cycle phase on force steadiness and motor unit properties in the elbow flexors. Lani’s future research goals are to understand how the absence of sex hormones post-menopause may influence motor unit properties and force steadiness. Her ultimate goal is to understand how sex hormones may impact force control and help optimize motor function for females across different stages of life. When not in the lab, Lani likes to be outdoors running and hiking in the beautiful Okanagan, and hanging out with the people she loves. A fun fact about Lani is that she was born and raised in Kelowna and has enjoyed living here her entire life.
Eric Smith – Computer Science Undergraduate Student
Eric is a 4th year Computer Science student finishing his undergraduate degree by the summer of 2025. His research began on a virtual reality co-design project working with older adults. He helped in developing virtual reality applications to fit their wants and needs with the assistance of other students and the older adults. His research has persisted and he is currently working on a fall-risk assessment and fall-risk prediction model for older adults. Eric’s primary research interests lay between human kinetics and computer science. Specifically, data visualization and statistics of muscle stimulation data and human computer interaction where he has had the opportunity to work on several projects within his classes. While not studying, Eric enjoys long distance running in the outdoors and playing on his soccer and volleyball teams in addition to spending his weekends on the ski hill. He also enjoys developing personal coding projects, playing video games, and building computers. A fun fact about Eric is that he loves live music and enjoys travelling to see his favourite bands play in person.