October 31, 2011 –
Alison Ozaki presented her
pressure insole for tap shoes.
CALIT2 academic affiliate Jeff Russell, assistant professor of dance science, couldn’t be prouder.
Seven of his students, including four who are undergraduates or recent graduates, presented their research last month at the 21st annual meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science in Washington, D.C.
“It is unusual for undergraduates to be selected as presenters at an international conference, but we had four of them on the program,” said Russell, who manages the SHAPe lab in the CALIT2 eHealth Collaboratory.
Researchers affiliated with SHAPe – Science and Health in Artistic Performance – employ innovative technology to study the demands of dance and other performing arts on the musculoskeletal system. The multidisciplinary team uses sensors, accelerometers, infrared cameras, balance tools, motion-capture programs and computer software to better understand the effects of repetitive movement and physical demands on the human body.
The three-day IADMS meeting, held Oct. 13-15, featured lectures, presentations, demonstrations and posters offered by researchers from around the world. Russell’s students joined him and other educators, administrators, scientists and dancers from Canada, France, United Kingdom, Australia, Israel, the Netherlands, Greece, Japan, Sweden, Scotland and other countries.
The annual meeting brings together those interested in enhancing the health, well-being, training and performance of dancers through education, medical and scientific collaboration.
Tiffany Yu tests balance in an effort to improve it. Yu won the Dr. Marjorie J. Moore Student Poster Award.
Mark Tomasic works to unite able-bodied and physically challenged dancers.
Undergraduate biological sciences major Alison Ozaki delivered a talk about her project, a pressure- and accelerometry-insole system for tap shoes.
Three SHAPe-affiliated students presented research posters: graduate student Kumiyo Kai on dance biomechanics (“Application of basic principles of biomechanics to dancers using accessible language and examples”); MFA graduate Mark Tomasic on physically integrated dance (“Merging art and science to develop inclusive modern dance curricula for wheelchair users”); and Tiffany Yu, a recent biological sciences graduate, on balance testing (“Comparison of postural stability between dancers and non-dancers as a prelude to identifying helpful balance training strategies”).
According to Russell, who also gave several talks at the conference, the students were remarkable.
Kumiyo Kai researches dance biomechanics. Her poster won the Best of Session prize in the
Educational Poster Category.
“I am so proud of them,” he said. “The real validation of the work my students have done is the large number of compliments I received from many IADMS attendees, including the organization’s senior leaders. They were amazed not only by the level of research the students did, but by the way they carried themselves in this scholarly, professional environment.”
This is the third consecutive year that his students have presented at the conference, and this contingent is UCI’s largest, Russell said. Only one institution – London’s Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance – brought more student presenters.
“This is such a gratifying result of a lot of effort, and it makes the hours and hours of preparation worthwhile,” he concluded.
–Anna Lynn Spitzer
