Heather More, BSc (hon) PhD student, Biomedical Physiology & Kinesiology Lab: K8501 Shrum Science Centre Phone: 778-782-7100 Fax: 778-782-3040 email: hmore(at)sfu(dot)ca

Bio
I am interested in how animal size affects physiology and, conversely, how physiology constrains animal size. Right now, I’m focusing on how the sensorimotor system changes with animal size, and how this affects the ways that large and small animals sense and respond to their environment. I’ve looked at the nerve conduction velocities of animals ranging in size from tiny five gram shrews to 3600 kilogram elephants, and am currently investigating how other neuromuscular delays are different (or not!) in these animals. I’m also looking at how the number of nerve fibers in peripheral nerves changes with animal size, and have worked with researchers from the Medical Image Analysis Lab at SFU to develop software which identifies axons and myelin in nerve images. Another exciting collaboration was with the Danish Cardiovascular Giraffe Research Project, during which I travelled to South Africa to study neuromuscular delays and nerve fiber number in giraffes, and to learn about how the unique shape of this animal affects its neural control.

When I’m not in the lab, I enjoy getting outside and kayaking, biking, or rock climbing. I also love going on epic backpacking trips to Europe, India, and Africa. At home, I can often be found baking delicious food and knitting geeky socks.

Publications
1. H.L. More, J. Chen, E. Gibson., J.M. Donelan, M.F. Beg. A semi-automated method for identifying and measuring myelinated nerve fibers in scanning electron microscope images. Journal of Neuroscience Methods. 201, pp 149-158, 2011.

2. H.L. More, J.R. Hutchinson, D.F. Collins, D.J. Weber, S.K. Aung, J.M. Donelan. Scaling of sensorimotor control in terrestrial mammals. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 277, pp 3563-3568, 2010.

Conference Proceedings
1. J. Chen, H.L. More, E. Gibson, J.M. Donelan, M.F. Beg. Automated methods for neuron segmentation and analysis of electron microscope images. Proceedings of the 33rd Canadian Medical and Biological Engineering Conference 2010. Vancouver, Canada.

Presentations
1. H.L. More, J.R. Hutchinson, D.F. Collins, D.J. Weber, S.K.H. Aung, J. Chen, M.F. Beg and J.M. Donelan. Tradeoffs in responsiveness and resolution in the peripheral nervous system. Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Meeting. Seattle, USA, 2010.

2. H.L. More, J.R. Hutchinson, D.F. Collins, D.J. Weber, S.K.H. Aung and J.M. Donelan. Scaling of sensorimotor control in terrestrial mammals (General Biomechanics Session). Society for Experimental Biology Annual Main Meeting. Glasgow, UK, 2009.

3. H.L. More, J.R. Hutchinson, D.F. Collins, D.J. Weber, S.K.H. Aung and J.M. Donelan. Scaling of sensorimotor control in terrestrial mammals (Young Scientist Award Session). Society for Experimental Biology Annual Main Meeting. Glasgow, UK, 2009.

4. H.L. More, J.R. Hutchinson, D.F. Collins, D.J. Weber, S.K.H. Aung and J.M. Donelan. Scaling of sensorimotor control in terrestrial mammals. Dynamic Walking. Vancouver, Canada, 2009.

5. H.L. More and J.M. Donelan. Scaling of sensorimotor control. Alberta Motor Control Annual Meeting. Jasper, Canada, 2007.