Parabolic continual learning.
Haoming Yang, Ali Hasan, Vahid Tarokh, Published as a conference paper at the Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Statistics (AISTATS) 2025
Elliptic loss regularization.
Ali Hasan, Haoming Yang, Yuting Ng, Vahid Tarokh, Published as a conference paper at ICLR 2025
Classification of odor derived EAGs with machine learning.
Josh Swore, M. Anderson, T. Daniel, and Jeff Riffell, Integrative and Organismal Biology (2025) [provisionally accepted]
Body oscillations couple with wing flapping to reduce aerodynamic power requirement in wild silk moth flight.
Usama Sikandar, Brett Aiello, and Simon Sponberg, Journal of the Royal Society Interface (2025)
Neuron synchronization analyzed through spatial-temporal attention
Neural Bottlenecks: Axon Count, Distribution, and Conduction in the Manduca sexta Neck Connective
Leo Wood, Karrah Hayes, Varun Sharma, Eric Sun, Max Chen, Simon Sponberg, Journal of Comparative Physiology A (2025)
Temporal resolution of spike coding in feedforward networks with signal convergence and divergence
Zach Mobille, Usama Bin Sikandar, Simon Sponberg, and Hannah Choi, PLoS Computational Biology (2025)
High-Speed Video of a Flying Ghost Moth, Phassus n-signatus (Hepialidae) Reveals Slight Forewing-Hindwing Out-Of-Phase Flapping
Akito Y. Kawahara, Yash Sondhi, Jamie Theobald, The Journal of the Lepidopterists’ Society (2024)
Flight power muscles have a coordinated, causal role in hawkmoth pitch turns
Day-night gene expression reveals circadian gene disco as a cnadidate for diel-niche evolution in moths
Yash Sondhi, Rebeccah L. Messcher, AnthonyJ. Bellantuano, Caroline G. Storer, Scott D. Cinel, R. Keating Godfrey, Andrew J. Mongue, Yi-Ming Weng, Deborah Glass, Ryan A. St Laurent, Chris A. Hamilton, Chandra Earl, Colin J. Brislawn, Ian J. Kitching, Seth M. Bysbee, Jamie C. Theobald, Akito Y. Kawahara, Proc. R. Soc. London B, (2024)
Insect Flight: State of the Field and Future Directions
Treidel, L.A.*, Deem, K.D., Salcedo, M.K., Dickinson, M.H., Bruce, H.S., Darveau, C.A., Dickerson, B. H., Ellers, O., Glass, J.R., Gordon, C.M., Harrison, J.F., Hedrick, T.L., Johnson, M.G., Marden, J.H., Lebenzon, J.E., Niitepõld, K., Sane, S.P. Sponberg, S., Talal, S. Williams, C.M., and Wold, E.S.G Integrative & Comparative Biology (2024)
Structural bottlenecks promote temporal coding in spiking neural networks.
Zach Mobille, Usama Sikandar, Simon Sponberg, and Hannah Choi Cognitive Computational Neuroscience (CCN) (2024)
Olfaction in the Anthropocene: NO3 negatively affects floral scent and nocturnal pollination
J.K. Chan, S. Parasurama, R. Atlas, R. Xu, U.A. Jongebloed, B. Alexander, J.M. Langenhan, J.A. Thornton, J. A. Riffell, Science (2024)
Why animals can outrun robots
Environmental impact on visual perception modulates behavioral responses of schooling fish to looming predators
Why flying insects gather at artificial light
An information theoretic method to resolve millisecond-scale spike timing precision in a comprehensive motor program
Predicting visually-modulated precisely-timed spikes across a coordinated and comprehensive motor program
Predicting sensory modulation of precise spike timing for motor control
Regression-based Spike Train Decoding in a Comprehensive Motor Program for Insect Flight
Pre-Prints and Submitted Manuscripts
Cross-subject Mapping of Neural Activity with Restricted Boltzmann Machines
Context dependent multisensory integration: Mechanosensation depends on luminance for robust performance
(bioRxiv)
Consistent coordination patterns provide near perfect behavior decoding in a comprehensive motor program for insect flight
(bioRxiv)
Body size and light environment modulate flight speed and saccadic behavior in free flying Drosophila melanogaster
Elina Barredo, Haoming Yang, John Paul Currea, Yash Sondhi, Ravindra Palavalli-Nettimi, Simon Sponberg, Vahid Tarokh, and Jamie Theobald (bioRxiv)
Adaptive full-envelop spiking neural network control of flapping-wing micro aerial vehicles
Hengye Yang, Xinyu Fang, Saksham Kaushik, Taylor Clawson, Usama Bin Sikandar, Simon Sponberg, Robert J . Wood, and Silvia Ferrari (submitted)
Gradual visual tuning in nocturnal hawkmoth eyes contrasts with abrupt diurnal specialization
Yash Sondhi, Ruchao Qian, John Paul Currea , Isabella Koushiar, Jacqueline Degen, Deborah Glass, Edward Stanley, Simon Sponberg, Ian J. Kitching, Akito Y. Kawahara, Jamie C. Theobald (submitted)
Conference Presentations
Sponberg, S. “Linking action and perception in the agile flower tracking flight of hawkmoths.” KITP program on Neurophysics of Active Sensing. Santa Barbara, CA
Leo Wood, Ben Doshna, Simon Sponberg “How to fly faster: Adapting a motor program to different locomotor frequencies in a clade of agile insects.” Gordon Research Conference on Neuroethology, Tuscany, Italy
Sponberg, S. “Neurally inspired strategies for fast, lexicographic, agile perception (and action).” NRO Technical Seminar.
Doshna, Ben, et al. “Adaptive flight control to increased body mass in foraging hawkmoths.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Baker, Joanna, et al. “μCT of hawkmoths and silkmoths reveals distinct muscle morphologies for hovering vs. bobbing flight.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Wood, Leo, and Simon Sponberg. “Are faster muscles all you need for faster locomotion?” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Hayes, Karrah, et al. “Myelin-like ensheathing glia in neck connective neurons of a large, agile flying insect.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
McGowan, Delaney, et al. “Balancing risk and reward? State dependent neural responses to looming threats in Manduca sexta.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Barredo, Elina, et al. “Forktail damselfly navigation strategies.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Jackson, Aaron, et al. “Flying vinegar flies localize attention when responding to complex visual scenes.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Qian, Ruchao, et al. “CT imaging reveals eye shape transition in the banded flower mantis: From cone to sphere.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
KC, Pramod, and Jeff Riffell. “Multisensory information processing in the premotor area in the Manduca sexta moth.” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Muzio, V., et al. “Light-dependent flight dynamics in Damselflies (Ischnura ramburii).” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Annual Meeting, January 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Patil, Anand A., & Jeff Riffell. “Genetic tools to study the molecular and neural bases of olfactory responses in moths and mosquitoes.” Pacific Branch Meeting, Entomological Society of America, 2025, Salt Lake City, UT.
Mobille, Zach, et al. “Temporal resolution of spike coding in feedforward networks with signal convergence and divergence.” Interface Neuro Conference, May 2025, Atlanta, GA.
Tarokh, V. “New Representation Learning, Prediction, and Sampling techniques and their Applications.” Invited speaker forAFRL/AFOSR Chief Scientist Distinguished Lecture Series 2024
Sponberg, S. “Orchestrating a comprehensive, spike-resolved motor program for agile insect flight.” Invited speaker for Air Force Bio-Inspired Sensing, Computing, and Control with International Teams (BISCCITs) seminar series. Virtual. 2024
Sponberg, S. “Transitions and tradeoffs in the strategies insects use to fly” Invited external speaker. University of Chicago EvMorph Seminar 2024.
Theobald, J. “Vision and flight in low photon visual environments” Invited talk at University of Maryland Biology Department 2024
Qian, R., and Theobald, J. “Neural Effects of Motion Parallax in the Tobacco Hornworm Hawk Moth” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2024
Muzio, V., and Theobald, J. “Vision and flight behavior trade offs for undersized Greater Wax moths” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2024
Barredo, E., and Theobald, J. “Drosophila flight responses to landscape motion speed during object tracking” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2024
Sponberg, S. “Biophysical transitions and unified dynamics of periodically driven (synchronous) and self-excited (asynchronous) flapping flight in insects and robots” Invited external speaker. University of Michigan Robotics Seminar Series 2023
Sponberg, S, Wood, L. “Orchestrating a comprehensive, spike-resolved motor program for agile insect flight” Joint talk with graduate student Leo Wood. Invited external speaker. Janelia Mechanistic and Cognitive Neuroscience Seminar Series. 2023
Sponberg, S, Gravish, N. “The mechanics of spring-wing flight and self-excited oscillations in insects and robots” Joint talk with Dr. Nick Gravish. Adaptive Motion in Animals and Machines 2023. Part of our organized session on “Beyond Aerodynamics: The role of mechanics, materials, and morphing in flight.” 2023
Muzio, V., Sondhi, Y., Barredo, E., Jo, N., Erickson, F., and Theobald, J. “Changes in circadian rhythm activity of moths subjected to simulated light pollution” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2023
Qian, R., and Theobald, J. “The visual influence of swaying behavior of praying mantises” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2023
Ruiz, C., and Theobald, J. “Habitat structure and natural history shape stabilizing responses in three species of fruit flies” The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2023
Sondhi, Y., Theobald, J., and Singh, R. “Exposure to high levels of artificial light at night decreases wild moth locomotion“ The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2023
Theobald, J. “Insect flight: robust control with tiny brains” Southern Society for Philosophy and Psychology 2023
Sondhi, Y., Fabian, S., Singh, R., Muzio, V., Jo, N., Allen, P., Theobald, J., Kawahara, A., Barredo, E. “Effects of light on insect activity times and flight speeds” Entomological Society of America 2023
Sondhi, Y., Fabian, S., Singh, R., Muzio, V., Jo, N., Allen, P., Theobald, J., Kawahara, A., Barredo, E. “Effects of light on insect activity times and flight speeds” International Conference on Invertebrate Vision 2023
Usama Bin Sikandar, Hannah Choi, Joy Putney, Hengye Yang, Silvia Ferrari, and Simon Sponberg “Predicting visually-modulated precisely-timed spikes across a coordinated and comprehensive motor program.” 2023 International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN); Gold Coast, Australia
Usama Bin Sikandar, Hannah Choi, Joy Putney, Hengye Yang, Silvia Ferrari, and Simon Sponberg “Predicting sensory modulation of precise spike timing for motor control” COSYNE 2023; Montreal, Canada
Aiello; Sharma; Nordström; Sponberg; Descending neurons responsive to flower stimuli and intermediate sized objects in the neck connective of the tobacco hawkmoth, Manduca sexta; International Conference on Invertebrate Vision 2023. Bäckaskog, Sweden
Sharma and Sponberg “Context dependent multimodal integration” SOAR/BISCITS 2023; Washington, DC
Sponberg and Aiello “How are object detecting descending neurons tuned in non-pursuit species?” SOAR/BISCITS 2023; Washington, DC
Varun Sharma and Simon Sponberg “Context dependent multimodal integration” International Conference of Invertebrate Vision 2023 Bäckaskog, Sweden
Varun Sharma and Simon Sponberg; GA Tech Physics of Living Systems Seminar 2023; Atlanta, GA
Patil and Riffell “Progress towards identifying promoter and marker for germline transformation and CRISPR/HDR mediated knock-in of the Manduca sexta Pacific Branch Meeeting Entomological Society of America 2023; Seattle WA
Leo Wood and Simon Sponberg; Lightning Talk; SOAR/BISCITS 2023; Washington, DC
Mobille, Sikandar, Sponberg, and Choi “Informational dynamics and decodability in spiking neural networks with biologically-motivated structure”, Collaborative Research in Computation Neuroscience (CRCNS) PI Meeting 2022, Atlanta, GA. October 27-28, 2022 (Poster)
Sikandar, Choi, Ferrari, and Sponberg “Predicting coordinated and precise motor spikes from a sensory stimulus”, Collaborative Research in Computation Neuroscience (CRCNS) PI Meeting 2022, Atlanta, GA. October 27-28, 2022 (Poster)
Sponberg, S. “Orchestrating precise spike timing across a comprehensive motor program for flight.”, Invited external speaker. Simons-Emory International Consortium on Motor Control meeting 2022
Dissertations
Sharma, V. (2025). Multisensory Integration and Memory in Hover Feeding Hawkmoths [Doctoral dissertation, Georgia Institute of Technology].
LaRosa, M. (2024). Towards Understanding Flight Characteristics by Reconstructing Motor Program Muscular Spikes. [Master’s Thesis, Duke University].
Sikandar, U. (2024). Emergent agility of insect flight from the integration of sensorimotor system and flight mechanics. [Doctoral dissertation, Georgia Institute of Technology].