Research Information
Research Interests
Dr. Taylor's research primarily focuses on animal and animal-inspired magnetoreception, multimodal sensation, sensory processing, and navigation. Global Navigation Satellite Systems provide navigation information for applications that underpin society (e.g., international trade, travel, global security). However, satellite-based navigation technologies can become compromised or unavailable for a variety of natural and manmade reasons. These technologies are also expensive to deploy and maintain, and cannot be used in underwater applications. In contrast, a variety of animals migrate across long distances using only their natural born senses. In particular, different species of insect, fish, bird, turtle, and marine mammal use the earth’s magnetic field (i.e., magnetoreception) as an omnipresent sensory cue to aid in navigation and migration across continents and oceans. Despite decades of research, the sensory and processing mechanisms that underpin magnetoreception and its resulting navigation remain enigmatic. Put simply, many animals are born with the ability to accomplish navigational tasks that parallel the goals of man-made systems. Dr. Taylor and his laboratory explore 1) how animals sense, process, and use earth’s magnetic field to navigate from one point to another, and 2) how the principles at play in animals might be leveraged to develop improved autonomous engineered systems.
Lab Website: WAKANDA: Wisdom and Knowledge from Animal Navigation, Direction, and Action | Case School of Engineering