Jailiene Miranda, Temple University bioengineering senior and SHPE chapter treasurer
Jailiene received her initial research experience under the guidance of Dr. Andrew Spence, whose research focuses on comparative studies of human and animal movement. Jailiene was able to work in Dr. Spence’s gait lab and study animal locomotion and spinal cord injuries. Her study gave her useful insight and data to help her better understand the mechanics of animal locomotion.
“One of the fi rst projects I worked on was comparing the kinematics of four- legged and six-legged cockroaches to characterize their gait on normal and rough terrain. For this project, we analyzed factors such as speed and perturbation of the roaches to understand how neuromechanical feedback helped stabilize the walking roach,” Jailiene said.
She has since gone on to work with rodents that experienced spinal cord injury in order to examine the locomotion of the injured animal after receiving gene therapy. In order to properly observe any changes, she trained and tracked the animals to gauge the impact of the therapy on the animals’ walking performance. “The impact of this research has the power to change the future of rehabilitation and change the lives of millions of people,” she explained.
“It is experiences and research like this that motivate me to continue to enhance my curiosity and infl uence the quality of my work. This is why I am grateful to be a part of the engineering community.”
Biomechanics studies are central to many facets of everyday life. Recent key advancements and applications are being used to extend much- needed research. The fi eld is helping engineers and scientists discover and compile new data concerning aging and disease-related mobility and repair, vehicle performance and soldier survival in military operations, and dental restoration and mobility. Further, biomechanics play a signifi cant role in prosthetic limb development and patient rehabilitation. These are but the tip of the iceberg for all that Jailiene hopes to accomplish in her academic studies and future professional career.
“As a bioengineering student, I found that there are so many pathways to applying engineering-based problem solving to the real world,” Jailiene said. “My goal as a bioengineer is to be impactful and make a diff erence—not only in my family, or in my community of North Philadelphia, or in the Latinx community, but in every way that I can. I hope to use my knowledge and experience to create medical
devices and new types of technology to improve the lives of others. That is exactly what I hope to do as a bioengineer: solve problems so that others can live better, healthier, more
productive lives.” HE
“That is exactly what I hope to do as a bioengineer: solve problems so that others can live better, healthier, more productive lives.”
www.hispanicengineer.com
HISPANIC ENGINEER & Information Technology | SPRING 2018
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