University of FloridaJul 18 2024 You join a swing dance class, and at first you're all left feet. But – slowly, eyes glued to the teacher – you pick up a step or two and start to feel the rhythm of the big band beat. A good start.
That's what UF Professor of Biomedical Engineering Daniel Ferris, Ph.D., and his former doctoral student, Noelle Jacobsen, Ph.D., discovered when they studied how people learn new motor skills. They hooked up dozens of healthy people to brain-monitoring electrodes and had them walk on a treadmill with two belts moving at different speeds. The treadmill forced people to rapidly learn a new way to walk.
In addition to hinting at how some of us pick up dance moves more quickly, the importance of visual processing could add to understanding the well-known link between vision problems and fall risks among older adults. In addition to making it harder to spot trip hazards, "if you're having trouble with vision, you may have problems learning new motor skills," Ferris said.