For anyone attending conferences in the baking heat this Summer, perhaps this recent blog post from our PhD students @sidneyleedham.bsky.social and @lucyhholmes.bsky.social about their time at this year's ProgPal will provide a sense of camaraderie and comic relief 🥵

Getting Hot and Bothered for Palaeontology: ProgPal 2026

By Sidney Leedham and Lucy Holmes During an absolutely sweltering week in June, the wise among us might prefer to stay indoors, to work from home, maybe to lie on the floor in front of a fan that c…

embliverpool.wordpress.com

Massive congratulations to our very own Rachel Tran for her prize winning poster on pufferfish inflation 🤩 🐡🏅🫶

Journal of Experimental Biology@jexpbiol.bsky.social · 4w ago

Congratulations to Rachel Tran, Alexander Casadei-Ferreira and Morgane Taillades who won first, second & third place in the JEB sponsored R McNeill Alexander Biomechanics Poster Award at the #SEBconference in Florence

Attending #SEBconference? Come learn about XROMM from a panel of experts (including several of our own EMB lab members 🥳)!!!

European XROMM Network@europexn.bsky.social · last mo.

The European XROMM Network (EXN) is thrilled to host it's first workshop at the 2026 #SEBconference in Florence, Italy! @sebiology.bsky.social Come learn all about data collection using x-rays, current methods, and novel techniques. Meet other researchers. Help build our European XROMM community.

Muscles don’t just move you - sometimes they slam the brakes 🛑💪 New paper: starting length + temperature strongly reshape the biphasic force response during eccentric contractions

Starting length and temperature dependence of eccentric muscle force–velocity behaviour

Summary: Eccentric muscle force development is highly sensitive to starting length and temperature, revealing distinct effects on contractile and elastic components and providing a framework for more ...

doi.org

my @bristolpalaeo.bsky.social master's research on alvarezsaur arms is finally out today! we used range of motion and moment arms analysis to show that these weird little dinosaurs probably did use their teeny tiny arms to dig 🦴

Range of motion and myology support a digging function for the forelimbs of alvarezsauroid dinosaurs

Abstract. Numerous lineages of theropod dinosaurs display notable modification of the forelimb, particularly reduction in size and number of digits. Alvare

royalsocietypublishing.org

We've got a new preprint out now with @maja-mielke.bsky.social from @uafunmorph.bsky.social looking at seed processing in songbirds using XROMM and some underlying physiology of the associated muscles! Check it out at doi.org/10.64898/202... @livevobiomech.bsky.social @sdu.dk

📣 postdocs! If you are considering a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) fellowship and looking for a host, do get in touch if you're interested in #biomechanics #skulls #muscles #morphometrics #FEA 📍 @livevobiomech.bsky.social 🔗 marie-sklodowska-curie-actions.ec.europa.eu/actions/post...

Have you ever wondered what happens to your muscles if you exercise up a mountain? 🗻 New paper out by Roger Kissane and colleagues looks to understand the skeletal muscle response to training under hypoxia:

Skeletal muscle adaptation to muscle activity and hypoxia: Differential structural and metabolic remodelling

Abstract figure legend There has been controversy about the structural (capillary) response of skeletal muscle to altered O2 status, involving decreased supply (hypoxia) or increased demand (activity...

doi.org

NEW PAPER 🆕💪❄️🔥 In press in AJP-Cell Physiology on how temperature shapes force during active muscle lengthening! doi.org/10.1152/ajpc...

New #DAWNDINOS paper! We do predictive simulations of vertical height jumping in the Triassic theropod Coelophysis & extant (tinamou) bird Eudromia. Mainly as sensitivity analysis of what parameters are most important. We show how crucial tail mobility is. royalsocietypublishing.org/rsif/article...

New paper out! The first from @osteosophia.bsky.social 's PhD - a new (hopefully more objective) way for categorising locomotor repertoires. With @eloygl.bsky.social @livevobiomech.bsky.social and Laura Fitton: royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...

A novel approach to quantifying mammal locomotor repertoires using scoring and cluster analysis

Abstract. Describing behaviour using qualitative categories is a staple of studies on tetrapod functional morphology, ecology and evolution. However, such

royalsocietypublishing.org

🐡⁉️Ever wondered how a pufferfish inflates? Very excited to announce that Drs Rachel Tran and Ariel Camp will be giving a FREE TALK/WORKSHOP on this very topic on the 10th March at Storyhouse in Chester with Chester SciBar! (details below)

What drives impaired exercise tolerance in type 2 diabetes? James Charles and Roger Kissane use experimental and musculoskeletal modelling data to show that diabetes changes tendon mechanics in a way that makes locomotion more expensive 🦴🐁💪📉 physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1113/...

📑‼️ New commentary out today from Roger on the importance of experimental design and best practice for muscle mechanics experiments!

Assessing muscle morphology and mechanics: one protocol does not fit all - Journal of Muscle Research and Cell Motility

Journal of Muscle Research and Cell Motility -

link.springer.com

If you're not enticed by this title I don't know what to tell you... New blog up from PhD student Betzy @betzymanners.bsky.social about her participation in a recent outreach event at @ntlmuseumsscot.bsky.social !

Primates, Passion and Power Points: What I Learnt Talking about Monkey Sex

By Betzy Manners Figure 1 An attentive family of Emperor tamarins. In November, National Museums Scotland displayed an exhibition focusing on ‘Our Primate Family.’ Featuring new taxidermy of more t…

embliverpool.wordpress.com

New paper out! From @livevobiomech.bsky.social with small contributions from me @ucl-c4ia.bsky.social , all ably led by Alice Maher - a very comprehensive look at scaling in the head and neck across tetrapods. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

New perspectives on head and neck allometry and ecomorphology in tetrapods

The skull and neck are vital parts of the body, influencing feeding ecology, habitat exploitation and locomotion. Numerous studies have therefore sought to understand how the size of these segments v...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

and another one! join us! BBSRC PhD studentship investigating how different anatomy and locomotor patterns affect joint loading in domestic dogs and other mammals 🐩🦴🐎 The project will involve a variety of biomechanics techniques including finite element analysis and MDA modelling - info below

(BBSRC NWD CASE) Selective breeding vs natural selection: how does body shape influence locomotor biomechanics in domesticated dogs and other mammals? at University of Liverpool on FindAPhD.com

PhD Project - (BBSRC NWD CASE) Selective breeding vs natural selection: how does body shape influence locomotor biomechanics in domesticated dogs and other mammals? at University of Liverpool, listed ...

findaphd.com

PhD advert 🥳 BBSRC studentship focusing on the role of fibrillin-1 on the microvascular and mechanical function of skeletal muscle - potential for a whole range of interdisciplinary research techniques 💪🦴🧬🩸 All info at the link below - come join us!

(BBSRC NWD) Fibrillin-1: a master regulator of skeletal muscle function? at University of Liverpool on FindAPhD.com

PhD Project - (BBSRC NWD) Fibrillin-1: a master regulator of skeletal muscle function? at University of Liverpool, listed on FindAPhD.com

findaphd.com

📣 📃 New paper out in press! 🦷 We look at the biomechanical impact of #tooth root morphology to inform #dental implant design. 👩‍💻We use finite element modelling to compare single vs. multiple roots on strain across the mandible. @apwoodbailey.bsky.social @livevobiomech.bsky.social

📣 Funded PhD combining anatomy, surgery and engineering! 💀 This project aims to characterise the biomechanical behaviour of jaw implants following mandibulectomy. 📍@livuni-ilcams.bsky.social Liverpool, UK 🥼@ukshaq.bsky.social @clairebrockett.bsky.social and me!

📣Another exciting PhD available! Partnered with @nottswildlife.bsky.social and fully funded by the ACCE+ NERC Doctoral Landscape Award. We will look at morphological trait evolution, isolation and environment change, and rewilding of large herbivores. #evolution #WilderFuture #rewilding #PhD

‼️📄 Two new papers out today in @jexpbiol.bsky.social lead by @jamescharles90.bsky.social, all about locomotion and load-carrying across different working dog breeds! ⤵️ 🐕 🏋️‍♂️ 🦮 (1/4)

BREAKING: Traitorous Liverpool PhD student lured to co-supervising institution with the promise of sloth chat and YouTube views 🦥🎥

sidney leedham@sidneyleedham.bsky.social · 11mo ago

got to talk about sloths! at the NHM!

📝🐕‼️ Think you really know the difference between a dachshund and a German shepherd? Not without reading our latest blog post! embliverpool.wordpress.com/2025/08/22/d...

Do different dog breeds move differently? – A DogWalk Study outreach event

By James Charles Since the dawn of civilisation, humans have pondered the question: do Dachshunds move the same as German Shepherds? Ponder no longer. Starting in July 2023, myself, Prof Karl Bates…

embliverpool.wordpress.com

What makes the skulls of rabbits and hares so special? Find out in this new paper from our very own @apwoodbailey.bsky.social @acsharp.bsky.social & others! 💀🐇📝

Dr Amber Wood-Bailey@apwoodbailey.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Check out our new paper in @journalofanatomy.bsky.social! 🐇💀 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Posters, talks, medieval manuscripts, getting lost in the NHM and writing about themselves in the third person! It's all here in a new blog post by PhD students Sidney and Harrie!📝 embliverpool.wordpress.com/2025/07/16/t...

The Natural History Museum Student Conference: getting lost in the science

Sidney Leedham and Harrie Williams The iconic entrance of the Natural History Museum, London. In June, the two of us attended the Natural History Museum’s Student Conference in London, as both our …

embliverpool.wordpress.com

Interested in the functional morphology of mammal heads and want to come join us in Liverpool? Apply for this exciting new PhD project with Alana!

Alana Sharp@acsharp.bsky.social · last yr.

Are you looking for a PhD project starting this year? I have a funded (UK rates) project on mammal skull diversity and function, looking at skull allometry and how mammal heads adapt to trade-offs in tissue demands during growth 🦌🦘🐘🦥 Please share and apply: www.liverpool.ac.uk/courses/buil...

Our lab does @prelights.bsky.social! Check out this one by PhD student Sidney and follow our new lab account @livevobiomech.bsky.social

preLights@prelights.bsky.social · last yr.

What’s that on your tail? Sidney Leedham, Roger Kissane & James Charles review an exciting #preprint from @schulzscience.bsky.social & team exploring how the development of a scaly-organ at the base of the tail of flying squirrels helps them stick to trees. prelights.biologists.com/highlights/s...