Motor Control Lab - Department of Kinesiology

MCSS-VI will be a five-day event, May 28 to June 1. It will include an arrival day (May 28), three days of sessions (May 29-31), and a departure day (June 1). We have made an arrangement with a Conference Center "Antiochian Village" in the Laurel Mountains area of Pennsylvania. The current rates range from $300 to $400 (approximately, depending on single/double/triple occupancy) for four nights including all meals.

The current, tentative list of faculty includes:

Roger Enoka, University of Colorado
Anatol Feldman, University of Montreal
Mark Latash, Penn State University
David Ostry, McGill University
Robert Sainburg, Penn State University
John Scholz, University of Delaware

If you would like to participate in MCSS-VI, please email a letter of interest to Mark Latash (latash@psu.edu).

THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS: February 15, 2009. Earlier applications will get preference for admission. Admission decisions will be made by March 15, and those accepted will be notified by e-mail. For more information, click here.

The Fifth MCSS was held on July 11-15, 2008 in The Maromac Event Center, Vals-des-Lacs, Quebec, Canada. The presentations and discussions focused on the role of neuronal properties and spinal circuitry in motor patterns, cortical activity and its modeling, locomotion, the degrees-of-freedom problem in motor control, the uncontrolled manifold hypothesis, and the equilibrium point hypothesis in its applications to unimpaired and disordered movements. The invited speakers were:

The Fourth MCSS was June 21-25, 2007 at the Antiochian Village in the Laurel Mountains of Pennsylvania. The presentations and discussions focused on human motor planning, generalization and variability in motor learning, the derees of freedom problem in motor control, the uncontrolled manifold hypothesis, postural synergies, and the equilibrium point hypothesis. The invited speakers included:

Anatol Feldman -University of Montreal
Mark Latash, Penn State University
Mindy Levin, McGill University
Zong-Ming Li, University of Pittsburgh
David Ostry, McGill University
David Rosenbaum, Penn State University
John Scholz, University of Delaware

The Third MCSS took place in "The Antiochian Village", Ligonier (PA) in the Laurel mountains on July 13-17, 2006. July 13 was the arrival day with a welcome party starting at about 6 p.m. For the next three days, there were morning and evening sessions (3 hours each) and a long break in the middle of the day for hiking. Each day culminated in a Happy Hour. The presentations and discussions focused on the organization of perception and action with an emphasis on haptic perception, biomechanical and motor unit analysis of prehension, uncontrolled manifold hypothesis and its applications to multi-digit actions, inverse dynamics and the role of hemispheric dominance, and - as usual - the equilibrium-point hypothesis. The invited speakers were:

The meeting took place in "Antiochian Village", Ligonier (PA) in the Laurel mountains on June 24-28, 2005. June 24 was the arrival day with a welcome party starting at about 7 p.m. For the next three days, there were morning and evening sessions (3 hours each) and a long break in the middle of the day for hiking. Each day culminated in a Happy Hour. The presentations and discussions focused on the role of dendritic persistent inward currents, inter-joint reflexes, force dependent feedback loops, synergies among motor units, cortical control of prehension, the role of the basal ganglia and Parkinson's disease, uncontrolled manifold hypothesis and anticipatory changes in synergies, inverse dynamics and the role of hemispheric dominance, and - as usual - the equilibrium-point hypothesis. The invited speakers were:

The meeting took place in Jim Thorpe (PA) in the Pocono mountains on July 7-11, 2004. July 7 was the arrival day with a welcome party starting at about 7 p.m. For the next three days, there were morning and evening sessions (3 hours each) and a long break in the middle of the day for hiking. Each day culminated in a Happy Hour. The presentations and discussions focused on interpreting electromyographic signals, effects of practice, equilibrium-point hypothesis, uncontrolled manifold hypothesis, dynamic systems approach, and biomechanics and control of prehension. The invited speakers were: