Research Symposium

BIO

Isaac Berger is a freshman in the Honors Program pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biology on the pre-med track at Florida State University. He is from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and his interests include mathematics, art, exercise, and reading.

Isaac is currently involved in undergraduate research through the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, where he studies motor learning in athletes at the FSU Flying High Circus. His research examines how student athletes learn and refine balance-based skills, such as the Rola Bola, contributing to a better understanding of human motor learning and performance. This project is conducted under the mentorship of Dr. Taylor Higgins, a professor at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.

After completing his undergraduate degree, Isaac plans to attend medical school with the goal of becoming a cardiothoracic surgeon. Through his academic coursework and research experience, he hopes to build a strong scientific foundation that will support his future career as a clinician.

TRACKING MOTOR LEARNING IN CIRCUS ATHLETES USING EXTERNAL VIDEO DATA

Abstract

Understanding the progression of motor learning in circus talents such as Rola Bola presents a unique challenge when working solely with external video data. Our study investigates how this type of video data can be effectively acquired and used to analyze motor learning development. We used two motion cameras to get both a front and sagittal view of the athlete and aimed to use the video analysis software Kinovea to derive measurable data points to track progress. This data would include joint angles, center of gravity, and body positioning. A few concepts we were particularly hoping to track were the impact of purposeful joint stabilization, the point of control or balance loss, and what aspects lead to overcorrection. We predict our results will indicate that video data is an effective and nonintrusive study method and that Kinovea could be effectively used if the athlete stayed in alignment with the cameras. Overall, our study hopes to determine that video data is an effective method to study basic motor concepts like balance, corrections, and failure patterns on a small scale and is a simple and affordable way to carry out our research. The use of video data has broader implications for athletes, coaches, medicine, and the study of motor learning, as it can support more informed coaching decisions, enhance injury‑prevention strategies, and make biomechanical feedback accessible in settings that lack advanced motion‑capture technology.

Keywords: Motor Learning Circus Video Data