Achievement

Brock Wester is a recent PhD graduate funded early in our IGERT program. Due to Brock’s participation in the IGERT program early in his graduate student career, he focused his thesis work on the development of technologies designed to interface with neural tissues. Brock designed, developed, characterized, and used two microsystem technologies, one to acquire electrical information from somatosensory cortex during traumatic brain injury, and the other to induce prescribed strain injuries onto single neurons. The systems design involved in these technology developments and experimental setups required a fundamental understanding of both neurophysiology and hybrid interfacing, which were imparted during the hands-on laboratory experiences in the IGERT program. A start-up company that successfully sold products to researchers in North America, Europe, and Asia was formed around one of these technologies, and provisional patents were filed for both.