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Research T hough primarily used in bioscience,
the term "evolution" is relevant to en- ly trained in engineering, use computability or bio-
gineering and other scientific fields
– more so now than ever. "Like many
other fields, mechanical engineering
has evolved significantly in the last few decades,"
says Prof. Anath Fischer, Deputy Executive Vice Pres-
ident at the Technion, who works at the Faculty of
Mechanical Engineering. One of the most important
recent directions in the field, she explains, is toward
medical applications: "in the past, each scientific
discipline existed separately from others, but now we
have shifted to a multidisciplinary approach where
engineering, bioscience, and other scientific fields
work together."
Prof. Anath Fischer: "Mechanical engineering
has evolved significantly in the last few decades.
One of the fascinating trends is the shift toward
multidisciplinary approaches – combining
engineering disciplines with bioscience and other
scientific fields. As academics progress in their
careers, the overlap between these three circles
becomes more and more integral to their work"
What does this new multidisciplinary approach
look like? Fischer points out that today, one would
be hard-pressed to find a mechanical engineering
lab that does not use computability (machine learn-
ing and big data) – to compare results with other
world-leading studies and measure their own stud-
ies' success.
The growing popularity of computability is not
the only change we are seeing: bioscience tools and
methods are also widely used in today's mechanical
engineering labs. The researchers and students at our
faculty's labs have diverse academic backgrounds,
14 | MEgazine | Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
Fischer says. "Some faculty members, though most-
science in their research. Asst. Prof Dana Solav, for
instance, designs temporary prostheses, scoliosis
braces, and other medical devices that require both
extensive knowledge about the tissue they connect
with and the ability to run advanced computer sim-
ulations. Some of our alumni are doing similar work
out in the industry. Other faculty members have ex-
tensive training in computability or life sciences, and
they are using this knowledge to solve engineering
problems. Assoc. Prof. Shelly Tzlil, for instance, has
degrees in chemistry and computer science and a
Ph.D. in physical chemistry. Among other topics, she
studies the way cells respond to the mechanics of
their environment."
Fischer adds that these multidisciplinary links be-
come more and more intricate the further along stu-
dents are in their academic studies. "Our B.Sc. pro-
gram is mainly focused on engineering, with some
elective courses in bioscience and learning methods
(computability). For their yearly project, students have
to combine all three disciplines and are expected to
augment their knowledge independently or take rel-
evant courses from other faculties. Starting from year
four, students work on diverse projects at the labs,
where they encounter elements from all three disci-
plines. For advanced degree students, combining the
three disciplines is an integral part of research work.
What does interdisciplinary research look like up
close? We talked to three scientists from the Faculty
of Mechanical Engineering whose labs routinely use
bioscience and computability knowledge to develop
cutting-edge engineering solutions.
Prosthetics that Learn
"We use the brain's responses
to the machine's mistakes
to improve performance"
Prof. Miriam Zacksenhouse heads not one but two
labs at the faculty: the Sensory-Motor Integration
Lab and the Brain-Computer Interfaces for Rehabili-
tation (BCI-Rehab) Lab. Her scientific background is
incredibly versatile – in her own words, her career
path has had "many twists and turns": after finishing
her bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics,
she stayed at the Technion for two more years to get
a B.Sc. in mechanical engineering. After that, she