Project Summary
Animal collectives, such as fish schools, bird flocks, and mammal herds, have long fascinated scientists for their extraordinary behaviors. These groups demonstrate remarkable strategies to maintain cohesion, optimize energy use, and adapt dynamically to environmental challenges. Among these, fish schooling behavior stands out for its exceptional group coordination, enabling individuals to maintain optimal spacing, synchronize movements, and collectively adapt with precision and efficiency. However, the role of visual information in driving collective decision-making in large groups remains elusive. Unlocking these mechanisms could reveal the computational principles underlying swarm intelligence, paving the way for transformative advancements in engineering applications through vision-based autonomous robots.
The Aresty summer science project will focus on studying vision-based collective behavior in fish schools. Specifically, the study will make use of zebrafish as an animal model to conduct hypothesis-driven experiments to investigate how visual cues are mapped into specific locomotory patterns that lead to collective behavior. The project will entail performing experiments, obtaining data, and conducting data analysis using statistical tools.
Applicant Responsibilities
The student is expected to engage in hands-on activities and computer programming. In particular, the student will (1) Work with lab equipment for behavioral studies with live fish, (2) Implement codes for data processing from video recordings, and (3) Implement codes for visualizing and analyzing experimental data. The student is expected to be proactive, communicative, and interested in experimental studies, statistics, and swarm systems. Experience with programming is a plus.
Eligibility and Requirements
Students must be rising sophomores at Rutgers-New Brunswick. No previous experience in research is necessary, and there is no minimum GPA. To be eligible, students must be full-time and in good academic standing at Rutgers-New Brunswick.
Deadline to apply: February 20, 2025
More Info and Application: https://webapps.rutgers.edu/urs/projects/projectdetails.aspx?ID=12093