Professor Jim Usherwood
BA MRes PhD
Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow; Professor
Department: Comparative Biomedical Sciences
Campus: Hawkshead
Research Groups: Musculoskeletal Biology, CPCS (Research Programme)
Research Centres: Structure & Motion Laboratory
Jim is a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow and Professor of Locomotor Biomechanics at the Structure & Motion . Jim's research interests cover the mechanics of both terrestrial and aerial locomotion. See his for detail on his research.
Jim's research interests cover the mechanics of both terrestrial and aerial locomotion. His main focus is a 5-year Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship in Basic Biomedical Science develop the 'Muscle-Mechanical Compromise Framework'. He is also a co-Investigator on a grant with funded by the US Air Force Office of Scientific Research 'Avian-Inspired Multifunctional Morphing Air Vehicles: Underpinning Biological Research'
My Google Scholar profile keeps a fairly complete and current list with links. Do email me if you cannot download the papers through this.
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Bird wings act as a suspension system that rejects gusts
Scientists from the 51³Ô¹ÏÍø (RVC) and the University of Bristol have discovered how birds are able to fly in gusty conditions – findings that could inform the development of bio-inspired small-scale aircraft.
We thought there might be something birds can teach us about coping with turbulence, so we invited Lily the barn owl, Sasha the tawny eagle, Ellie the goshawk and some of their friends to fly through gusts we made in our laboratory.
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High aerodynamic lift from the tail reduces drag in gliding raptors
Scientists from the RVC and the University of Bristol have discovered how birds are able to fly in gusty conditions – findings that could inform the development of bio-inspired small-scale aircraft.
Birds and planes must obey the very same laws of physics, and a wing is a pretty good way to create the aerodynamic force known as Lift which balances the Weight of the animal, or aeroplane, due to the relentless pull of gravity. However, there are several notable differences between the two fliers. Flapping is a way to reorient the wings and the aerodynamic force they produce to propel animals forwards in order to balance drag.