Expected Graduation Date: Fall 2005
I work in Cynthia Moss's Batlab, studying the sonar beam patterns of flying echolocating bats as they chase insects. I plan to graduate in the fall of 2005.

Echolocation is a sense that is difficult for sighted humans to empathize with. An animal echolocates by sending out pulses of sound and listening to the echoes that return. The echoes contain clues to what is out there in the environment. The closest I can get is to sit outdoors at a crowded cafe and close my eyes. As I sit, images begin to form in my mind. As people tap on the pavement as they walk, as they talk, I get an idea of how far they are, where they are, and how fast they move. I have no sensation of objects that make no sound, such as trees - except when the wind rustles their leaves. Blind people can form a percept of even silent things by using 'stick-sonar' - they carry canes, which they tap on the pavement. The taps from the cane carry outwards then bounce off people, trees and cars. The echoes change as the environment changes, giving clues as to what lies ahead and to the sides. But this is still a vague, blurry sense. Echolocating bats are fast flying (upto 10m/s) rapidly maneuvering (often pulling 1g turns) mammals that catch flying insects no more than a few centimeters long. They do this in complete darkness forming their percept of the environment entirely through sound. It was the acuteness of the sense, and the extent to which it is removed from our (human) experience, that drew me to study echolocating bats.

Collaborative research and study

The Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NACS) Program at the University of Maryland has been perfect for my doctoral research. The interdisciplinary aspect of the program has influenced me the most. My bachelors and masters training has been in the field of electrical engineering. My research into the behavior of echolocating bats has been facilitated by close collaborations with engineering faculty. The NACS program and my adviser were central in this collaboration, enabling me to find people asking the same questions that I was, but who were using different methods and approaches.

Exposure to many levels of the brain and nervous system

these gatherings sometimes lead later to additional work in the lab on new topics with new people. The NACS program sponsors a weekly talk every Friday. The talks span the entire spectrum of neuroscience and cognition and have served to broaden my understanding of the field and expose me to the different levels of explanation that are invoked in the study of the brain and nervous system.

These talks are supplanted by mini-symposia where, after the talks, students and faculty get to retreat to an informal social gathering (also known as a "party") where we can kick back and get to know each other outside the serious environs of the lab. Oddly enough, these gatherings sometimes lead later to additional work in the lab on new topics with new people.