As a postdoctoral research engineer in the Neurobionics Laboratory at Monash University, my research is centred around cortical prostheses, particularly for bionic vision. My primary focus involves enhancing the achievable resolution in cortical implants through the application of current steering techniques. Additionally, I am investigating the intricate pathways of artificially induced information as it traverses the visual hierarchy, aiming to elucidate and optimise the interactions between cortical visual prostheses and the brain. Beyond my research pursuits, I am actively involved in educating undergraduate students in both the physiology and engineering faculties at Monash. This dual engagement allows me to impart knowledge and foster intellectual growth in aspiring students.
I assessed how information induced by cortical visual prostheses propagates through the visual hierarchy to enhance multielectrode stimulation paradigms for evoking the desired neural response. Additionally, I conducted studies on the effects of current steering within the visual cortex to improve the resolution of artificial vision. Both objectives involved examining the physiological connections between brain areas and creating custom-designed engineering components, such as electrode arrays, stimulation software, and analysis software.
For my honours project, I constructed a prosthetic hand with passive, bistable mechanisms to improve contact forces of artificial fingers. This project required extensive mathematical computations within MATLAB and Autodesk Inventor in addition to knowledge about 3D printing and rapid prototyping.
- Courses: BMS1031 Medical Biophysics, ECE4081 Medical Instrumentation, BMS1052 Human Neurobiology
- Works with undergraduate students to assist them in completing their workshops/practicals
- Completed both simple and complex marking tasks as required
- Helped to restructure practical materials for an online format in accordance with Covid safe practices
- Assisted in educating groups of undergraduate students across both the engineering and physiology faculties
- Designed, simulated and prototyped a biomimetic, bistable prosthetic index finger
- Operated complex computer software i.e. AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, MATLAB
- Collaborated with experts at RMIT and Polytechnique to achieve the best project outcome
- Monash Institute of Medical Engineering’s Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM) Student Leader Award 2024
- Graduate Research Completion Award at Monash University 2023
- Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship and Fee Offset from 2020 – 2023
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute scholarship for the Cold Spring Harbor computational neuroscience vision course 2022
- Best Post-graduate Paper at the IEEE EMBC ISC Asia-Pacific Student Conference 2022
- 3MT ESCE departmental winner and faculty of engineering runner-up 2021
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function ECR Seed Funding Grant 2020
- Commendation prize in the field of Biomedical Engineering as judged by industry at EnGenius 2019
- Biomedical Engineering Prize awarded to the best Biomedical Engineering student in 2017, 2018 and 2019
- Polyechnique Montreal 2019 Winter Research Internship Scholarship 2019
- School of Electrical and Computer Engineering Undergraduate Academic Merit Scholarship 2016-2019
- S. J. Meikle, M. A. Hagan, N. S. C. Price, and Y. T. Wong, "Cortical layering disrupts multi-electrode current steering," Journal of Neural Engineering, 2023
- S. J. Meikle, M. A. Hagan, N. S. C. Price, and Y. T. Wong, "Intracortical current steering shifts the location of evoked neural activity," Journal of Neural Engineering, 2022
- S. J. Meikle and Y. T. Wong, "Neurophysiological considerations for visual implants," Brain Structure and Function, vol. 227, no. 4, pp. 1523-1543, 2022
- S. J. Meikle, M. A. Hagan, N. S. C. Price, and Y. T. Wong, "Filling in the Visual Gaps: Shifting Cortical Activity using Current Steering," in 2021 43rd Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (EMBC)
- S. J. Meikle, T. J. Allison-Walker, M. A. Hagan, N. S. C. Price, and Y. T. Wong “Electrical stimulation thresholds differ between V1 and V2”, in 2023 45th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (EMBC)
- Treasurer Physiology HDR Society at Monash University 2022-Present
- Vice-chair IEEE Women in Engineering Monash student club 2022-Present
- Vice-Chair IEEE EMBS student club at Monash University 2020-2021
- Member of the Australasian Neuroscience Conference Local Organising Committee 2022
- Member of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology International Student Conference Organising Committee 2022
- Member of the Monash Vision Group 2020-Present
- Member of Australian Research Council Center of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function 2020-2021
- Speaker at the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology International Student Conference Organising Committee 2022
- Speaker at the Biomedical Engineering RMIT Student Society Industry and Research Event 2023
- Presented at the Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Society (EMBC) 2021 and 2023
- Presented at the Australasian Neuroscience Society (ANS) Conference 2022
- Presented at the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology International Student Conference 2022
- Volunteer at the 2022 IEEE Women In Engineering international leadership summit
- Supervised one summer research student 2021-2022
- Supervised one honours year student working on neuronal spike sorting 2021
- Mentored two honours year students 2021
- Supervised one summer research student working with the Monash Vision Group 2020
- Member of the Biomedical Engineering RMIT Student Society 2016-2019
- Collaborated with Polytechnic Montreal to design a bistable, underactuated prosthetic hand 2019
- Collaborated with the company Solve Disability Solutions in designing an eye-tracking application to enable people with limited mobility to execute tasks such as unlock a door or access a reversing camera in a wheelchair 2018
- Completed 66 hours of community service through volunteering and fundraising events such as Relay for Life, Shave for a Cure and volunteering in a Year 1 classroom to help struggling students 2014-2015
- MATLAB
- C++
- High Performance Computing (SLURM)
- Github
- Autodesk Product Design Suite
- Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
- Microsoft office
