Pavan Ramdya (born 1979) is an American and Swiss

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, Biological neural network, neural circuits, and glia, and their Behavior, behavioral, biological, and psycholo ...

and bioengineer. His research centers on understanding the cognitive and neuromechanical control of behavior toward applications in

robotics Robotics is the interdisciplinary study and practice of the design, construction, operation, and use of robots. Within mechanical engineering, robotics is the design and construction of the physical structures of robots, while in computer s ...

and

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

. He holds the

Firmenich Firmenich SA was a Swiss company in the fragrance and flavor business. The company has created perfumes for over 125 years and produced a number of well-known flavors. Founded in 1895, it merged in May 2023 with the Dutch company DSM to form ...

Next Generation Chair in

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions, and its disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, ...

and

bioengineering Biological engineering or bioengineering is the application of principles of biology and the tools of engineering to create usable, tangible, economically viable products. Biological engineering employs knowledge and expertise from a number ...

at EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne), and is head of the Neuroengineering Laboratory at EPFL's School of Life Sciences.

Career

Ramdya studied

Drew University Drew University is a private university in Madison, New Jersey, United States. It has a wooded campus. As of fall 2020, more than 2,200 students were pursuing degrees at the university's three schools. While affiliated with the Methodism, Me ...

, where he received his bachelor's degree with honors (''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'', ''

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

'') in 2001. He continued his studies at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and in 2009 received a PhD for his work in the group of Florian Engert. He then went on to perform postdoctoral work in neurogenetics and robotics in the laboratories of Richard Benton at

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; ) in Lausanne, Switzerland, was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second-oldest in Switzerland, and one of the oldest universities ...

(UNIL) and Dario Floreano at EPFL, respectively. There he studied locomotor control and collective behavior in ''

Drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (an insect of the Order (biology), order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly", "pomace fly" ...

''. In 2015, he moved to the

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech) is a private research university in Pasadena, California, United States. The university is responsible for many modern scientific advancements and is among a small group of institutes ...

to work as a visiting postdoctoral fellow with Michael Dickinson where he developed a means for imaging motor circuit activity in behaving ''

Drosophila ''Drosophila'' (), from Ancient Greek δρόσος (''drósos''), meaning "dew", and φίλος (''phílos''), meaning "loving", is a genus of fly, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or p ...

''. Since 2017 he has been a professor of

and bioengineering at EPFL, and head of the Neuroengineering Laboratory located in both the Brain Mind Institute and at the Institute of Bioengineering in EPFL's School of Life Sciences.

Research

Ramdya's research is focused on

reverse-engineering Reverse engineering (also known as backwards engineering or back engineering) is a process or method through which one attempts to understand through deductive reasoning how a previously made device, process, system, or piece of software accompl ...

biological neuromechanical control to inspire the development of artificial systems that can mimic the flexibility and agility of animal behaviors. Specifically, he studies limb-dependent behaviors in the adult fly, ''

'', employing an interdisciplinary approach which draws on genetic manipulations, neural and behavioral recordings, physics

simulations A simulation is an imitative representation of a process or system that could exist in the real world. In this broad sense, simulation can often be used interchangeably with model. Sometimes a clear distinction between the two terms is made, in ...

and

artificial neural network In machine learning, a neural network (also artificial neural network or neural net, abbreviated ANN or NN) is a computational model inspired by the structure and functions of biological neural networks. A neural network consists of connected ...

s. His research has been featured in National Geographic, IEEE Spectrum, Nature (journal), Nature, Quanta Magazine, and Le Monde.

Distinctions

He is a member of the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies, FENS-Kavli Foundation (United States), Kavli Network of Excellence. He has been the recipient of Human Frontier Science Program, HFSP Long-term and Career Development Awards, as well as the UNIL Biology and Medicine, Young Investigator Award in Basic Science. In 2019, he was awarded an Swiss National Science Foundation, SNSF Eccellenza Grant.

Selected works

* * * * * *

References

External links

* * Publication listed o
Publons
* Website of th
Neuroengineering Laboratory
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramdya, Pavan 1979 births Living people Drew University alumni Harvard University alumni University of Lausanne alumni Academic staff of the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne American neuroscientists American bioengineers