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Shiliang Cui ’09 (Shanghai, China) is spending the summer building mathematical models that could one day serve as useful tools for biologists investigating the origin of vertebrae and other questions surrounding fish locomotion.
Cui’s EXCEL project builds on previous modeling work done last year by Jinjin Qian ’08 (Shanghai, China), who is pursuing a B.S. in mathematics and an A.B. in economics and business, and is part of the ongoing research of Robert Root, associate professor of mathematics.
In June 2005, Root and Chun Wai Liew, associate professor of computer science, were awarded a $956,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to study how vertebrae first evolved. The project teams Root and Liew with biologist John Long of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and biomedical engineer Tom Koob of the University of South Florida in Tampa, Fla.
During the four year grant period, several student researchers will be involved in the multidisciplinary project.
Cui, who is pursuing a B.S. in mathematics and an A.B. in economics and business, is focusing on the generation of force by fish muscle, and the interaction between the muscle and the skeleton.
“Fish were the first vertebrates,” says Root. “But they evolved without vertebrae. In place of the vertebral column they had a fluid-filled tube called a notochord. Despite its effectiveness, the notochord was replaced by a vertebral column in several different families of fish, including the fleshy-finned fish which eventually evolved into amphibians, and land vertebrates, including humans.
“Entirely separately, vertebrae evolved in the shark family, and in the ray-finned fishes that most people think of when the word fish is mentioned: trout, bass, or tuna. For vertebrae to develop in so many different lines, they must be very useful. Our goal is to find out how [they developed], specifically by looking at the biomechanics of swimming fish.”
Cui is extending and completing the model which Qian began. He will be putting the model into a more mechanically realistic setting, which is designed to monitor how stiffness of the axial skeleton affects the efficiency of control and use of muscle forces.
“[Shiliang] is an enthusiastic and hard-working student with an unusual breadth of background in mathematics,” says Root. “Despite being only a rising sophomore, he brings a great deal of talent to the modeling enterprise.”
Both Root and Cui hope the model will be ready for presentation at the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology’s annual meeting in January. Qian presented the results of her portion of the modeling at the 20th annual National Conference of Undergraduate Research in April.
“I have found the modeling of fish locomotion to be a perfect venue for introducing students to research,” says Root. “I have pursued it as the primary thrust of my own scholarship, not just because of the interesting biological questions it addresses and the breadth of mathematics that is required, but also because of the opportunities it offers to EXCEL scholars. I really enjoy the opportunity to include students in my research; it is one of the most satisfying aspects of teaching at Lafayette.”
Cui is a member of Lafayette Guitar Ensemble, International Students Association, and Intramural Outdoor Soccer, and will be a McKelvy House Scholar next school year. He was also a member of the team that won the LVAIC Mathematic Competition in November 2005 and Lafayette Team Barge in January.
“I think undergraduate research is the best part of Lafayette and I believe this is the richest educational experience I will have as a college student,” says Cui. “I want to be an applied mathematician or an engineer in the future. This math modeling research will not only make me stronger academically but will also give me a sense of what I will do for my future career.”