{"682018":{"#nid":"682018","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Richard Nichols Receives 2025 Bernstein Prize","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EProfessor Emeritus\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/people\/richard-nichols\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ERichard Nichols\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E of the School of Biological Sciences has been awarded the 2025 Bernstein Prize by the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/i-s-m-c.org\/\u0022\u003EInternational Society of Motor Control\u003C\/a\u003E (ISMC). This prize, the highest honor bestowed by the ISMC, recognizes significant contributions to the field of motor control and learning in the spirit of the Russian neurophysiology pioneer Nikolai Aleksandrovich Bernstein.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cThis is a meaningful prize that honors the longstanding impact of two Russian scientists, Anatol Feldman and Mark Latash. They founded the ISMC and were influential in building a community of scientists in the United States and Canada focused on motor systems research following in the tradition of Bernstein,\u201d says Nichols, who retired from the\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/biosciences.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Biological Sciences\u003C\/a\u003E in 2023. \u201cReceiving this prize is thrilling. It\u2019s a cap on my career.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENichols will receive the award during ISMC\u2019s biennial meeting this summer.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EFrom basic research to potential treatments\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENichols began his decades-long career researching the spinal cord, a key component of the central nervous system that relays information between the brain and periphery (muscles, joints, skin, etc.). He notes that the spinal cord is more than a simple communications highway; it contains neural networks that can exert some control.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cWhen we walk across the room, the spinal cord\u0026nbsp;\u2014 not the brain\u0026nbsp;\u2014 generates and sends detailed messages to our muscles. The brain simply says, \u2018It\u2019s time to walk across a room and avoid this or that obstacle.\u2019 The spinal cord contains the machinery to do so,\u201d explains Nichols.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENichols\u0027 research initially centered on understanding how sensory information from the periphery is used by the spinal cord and brain to control movement. More recently, his focus shifted to possible real-world applications of his findings.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EFor example, Nichols collaborated with\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/louisville.edu\/bucksforbrains\/faculty\/dena-r-howland.html\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDena Howland\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E of the University of Louisville on research grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that are centered on understanding spinal cord injury.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003E\u201cHad it not been for my collaboration with Dena over the past 11 years, my work would have remained limited to the fundamental science of how the spinal cord and brain function. Our translational project has broadened the scope and impact of my research,\u201d he adds.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003EAccording to Nichols, the NIH and VA grants were synergistic: the NIH grant focused on spinal cord function, while the VA grant centered on rehabilitation strategies following spinal cord injury. Through this complementary research, the team uncovered insights about the spinal cord\u0026nbsp;\u2014 potentially revealing new treatment pathways to aid motor control recovery after spinal cord injury.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp dir=\u0022ltr\u0022\u003ENichols retired from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2023 after 16 years of service. Before joining the Institute in 2007 as chair of the School of Applied Physiology (now the School of Biological Sciences), he chaired the Department of Physiology at Emory University. Nichols received a B.S. in Biology from Brown University and a Ph.D. in Physiology from Harvard University.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EProfessor Emeritus\u0026nbsp;Richard Nichols of the School of Biological Sciences has been recognized for his significant contributions to the field of motor control and learning.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Professor Emeritus\u00a0Richard Nichols of the School of Biological Sciences has been recognized for his significant contributions to the field of motor control and learning. "}],"uid":"36583","created_gmt":"2025-04-25 12:51:21","changed_gmt":"2025-05-02 15:26:13","author":"lvidal7","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-04-25T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2025-04-25T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"593197":{"id":"593197","type":"image","title":"Richard Nichols","body":null,"created":"1498854592","gmt_created":"2017-06-30 20:29:52","changed":"1745585799","gmt_changed":"2025-04-25 12:56:39","alt":"Richard Nichols","file":{"fid":"226114","name":"T RICHARD NICHOLS DSC_9125.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/T%20RICHARD%20NICHOLS%20DSC_9125_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/T%20RICHARD%20NICHOLS%20DSC_9125_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":194757,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/T%20RICHARD%20NICHOLS%20DSC_9125_0.jpg?itok=I6UGmsvx"}}},"media_ids":["593197"],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"66220","name":"Neuro"},{"id":"1275","name":"School of Biological Sciences"}],"categories":[{"id":"146","name":"Life Sciences and Biology"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"4896","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"166882","name":"School of Biological Sciences"},{"id":"187423","name":"go-bio"},{"id":"192249","name":"cos-community"},{"id":"172970","name":"go-neuro"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"193656","name":"Neuro Next Initiative"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EWriter: Lindsay C. Vidal\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}