Profiles

Dr. Ewa Niechwiej-Szwedo completed her graduate work at the University of Toronto and joined the University of Waterloo in 2012. Her research program is grounded in systems neuroscience and focuses on discovering the fundamental mechanisms involved in the central nervous system control of eye and hand movements across the lifespan. She has expertise in the field of visuomotor neuroscience, including gaze behaviour, hand-eye coordination, motor skill development and learning. 

Michael Barnett-Cowan is an Associate Professor in Kinesiology and Health Studies.  Michael is also the Director of the Multisensory Brain and Cognition Lab at the University of Waterloo, which seeks to determine how the brain integrates multisensory information. The lab has a specific interest in the vestibular (balance) system and determining how information about head movement and orientation is combined with the other senses to enable optimal object recognition, decision-making, and coordinated movement in the normal, injured, diseased, and aging brain. 

Richard Hughson is Schlegel Research Chair in Vascular Aging and Brain Health at the Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging. His research focuses on how increased arterial stiffness affects brain blood flow and how older persons experience dizziness and increased risk of falling. He has studied astronauts to understand how and why arteries have “aging-like” changes (increased carotid artery stiffness) after 6-months in space. He is Principal Investigator on 6 projects on the International Space Station including Vascular Calcium that is part of the CIPHER study of astronauts spending one-year in space. His research in the science of human health developed from his own participation in competitive distance running and the belief that physical activity contributes to long and healthy lives. Richard Hughson is also Professor Emeritus in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Studies, Faculty of Health and a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.