Theodore Raphan, Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and Psychology at The Graduate Center and of Computer and Information Science at Brooklyn College, is interested in discovering how the central nervous system controls balance and movement, how neural circuits learn and adapt, as well as in new approaches to the characterizing, analyzing, and rendering of images related to biological research. The work synthesizes ideas from artificial intelligence, image processing and analysis, information theory, computational neurobiology, bioinformatics, biomechanics, cognitive neuroscience, psychology, and physiology. Dr. Raphan directs the Institute of Neural and Intelligent Systems at Brooklyn College, CUNY, where this work is carried out.
A grant from the National Eye Institute, which has been ongoing for the past 20 years, supports basic work on computer modeling of the behavior and organization of the vestibulo-ocular reflex. Through computer modeling and model-based experiments, work on this project is identifying the neural basis for maintenance of gaze stability and spatial orientation during rotation and linear translation of the head. A grant from the National Institutes of Deafness and other Communicative Disorders (NIDCD) supports experimental and theoretical modeling work on how the vestibular system stabilizes body, head, and eye movements during natural locomotion in humans. This work is potentially useful in diagnosing pathologies which impact locomotion, such as Parkinson's disease. Dr. Raphan also is funded by the National Space Biological Research Institute, a NASA funded institute, to develop balance assessment criteria for astronauts who are exposed to microgravity during space flights. A grant from the NIDCD supports work on computer modeling of the neural circuits that control learning and adaptation in the vestibular system. The purpose of this work is to better understand the vestibular system, aid in vestibular rehabilitation, and develop countermeasures for vertigo and balance control.