Rising Star: Ann Kennedy Bridges the Divide of Biology and Computational Theory

Ann Kennedy, rising star in the field of computational biology

The acrylic table, which was originally a toy cat, is still under construction. It can only be opened to allow the stuffed mice, originally used as a toy to set up cameras. Kennedy presses the toy and it squeaks. Kennedy, assistant Professor of Neuroscience at Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, explains that \”normally, you remove the squeaker before setting up experiments.\”

The playful squeak in a lab otherwise defined by quiet computational modeling is an unexpected sound. Among her projects, Kennedy is expanding her work with an artificial-intelligence-driven tool called the Mouse Action Recognition System (MARS) that can automatically classify mouse social behaviors. Her modeling work is also used to understand how different brain regions and cell types interact, as well as to link neural activity to behaviors in order to better understand how the brain integrates information. Most of her work is done on computers, with code, data and graphs, in her office, located on the 5th floor of Northwestern University’s Ward Building, downtown Chicago. In a small room across the hall, Kennedy’s postdoctoral research and technician team sits at workstations. The lab was launched by Kennedy less than one year ago.

Kennedy’s colleagues point out that her ability to explain abstract concepts using a stuffed animal is what sets her apart. She is one of the few theoretical neuroscientists who can translate their mathematical work into actual experiments. Larry Abbott, a Columbia University theoretical neuroscientist who advised Kennedy during her graduate school years, says that this is Kennedy’s gift. She’s very good at technical stuff but she’s not that effective if the results and experiments aren’t reflected in her work. She is really good at finding the correct mathematics to apply to a particular problem.

Source:
https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/profiles/rising-star-ann-kennedy-bridges-gap-between-biology-computational-theory/


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