Meeting Abstract
Biomechanics seeks to understand the form and function of organisms. Researchers have largely taken two tacks toward this goal: 1) observing and modeling representative organisms to infer form based on function, or 2) quantifying trait diversification and evolutionary constraint to infer function based on form. This has led to the development of sophisticated tools including, but not limited to mathematical and computational modeling on first tack, and geometric morphometrics, classic biomechanics manipulation experiments, and phylogenetics on the other. These are powerful approaches, and they have much to offer each other toward understanding the evolution and biodiversity of form and function, yet there has been little work to date on combining computational modeling and morphometrics. A few works have started to bridge this divide, but these methods are under-developed and not widely used. Recent advancements in computational power that previously limited attempts to both model function and to handle and analyze large data sets make this an ideal moment to spur development of collaborative efforts, and as such, the purpose of this symposium is to examine the idea of studying the evolution of functional structures using mixed methods of classic biomechanics, together with computational and mathematical modeling, all in a phylogenetic framework. The symposium brings together speakers with backgrounds in both approaches with the hope of promoting ideas by speakers who have worked to develop methods to bring both sides together.
